Yani Tseng's second round at the Yokohama Tire LPGA Class..."/> Yani Tseng's second round at the Yokohama Tire LPGA Class..."/>

Yani Tseng Tops LPGA Leaderboard

By Elizabeth Bethel | Aug 29, 2015

One round doesn’t signal a change in fortune, but Yani Tseng‘s second round at the Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic was a joy to Tseng and to everyone around her.

Her playing partner Stacy Lewis, clapped her on the back as they came out of the scoring tent; and every fan who has watched the former world number one fight a very public battle to find her game is smiling at the Tour goes into the weekend at Sweet Home, Alabama! After carding a stunning 2nd round 64, Yani Tseng has a one-shot lead.

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Tseng’s first round, 2-under par 70 was respectable, but nothing to write home about. Then she came alive on Friday. Something clicked and we’ve all known it was coming. All season there have been Yani moments — the pure approach shot, the perfect putt. Finally, on Friday there was a flawless Yani round. She put it all together, averaging 293 yards off the tee, an eagle on the par-5 8th, an economical 29 putts.

Watching Tseng was like teleporting back to 2011 and that time before Inbee Park, before Lydia Ko, when Yani led and everybody else chased. That towering 190-yard approach shot with six-iron on the 8th hole put her ball to four feet. She followed it with an eagle putt. The Yani Tseng who used to leave me speechless was back!

Never mind the 96 minute delay that kept Tseng from finishing the ninth hole, her last. Tseng calmly returned and made birdie — a serene, certain putt to conclude her round and take a one-shot lead over Austin Ernst going into the weekend.

How does Yani Tseng feel about this change of fortune? In a word, she feels good, very, very good!

"“. . . it’s a new day so I wasn’t thinking as much but it still for sure gave me some good confidence out there. Just want to keep playing as happy Yani and just enjoy it.”"

Tseng’s worked hard this year to regain her footing. She hired a new coach, a new trainer, and a new mental coach. And this is the first time Tseng’s held the lead heading into a weekend since 2013. But all year I’ve seen glimpses of the old Yani – the one who Lewis said “changed the way women play the game” but hasn’t held a lead heading into the weekend since 2013.

Stacy Lewis has played again the Yani who could hit the ball further than any woman on the planet, who rarely missed the fairway, who attacked every pin and holed the putt when she got to it. Lewis said she saw glimmers on Thursday and was having full 2011 déjà vu as a front row witness to Friday’s 64.

”She’s firing at pins that are tucked and hidden in there close. She hits it so far and hits the irons so high that they have a lot of spin . . . it’s fun to see. . .”

The Capitol Hill-Senator favors long hitters. That would be Yani Tseng. Can she follow up Friday’s round with another one? She’s going to have Austin Ernst and Lexi Thompson breathing down her back, and neither Ernst nor Thompson is a cream-puff.

Let’s see how it goes in Prattville today.

(All quotes courtesy lpga.com)

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