South Korean standout surges to the top with a bogey-free 65 in round two
Somi Lee of South Korea surged to the top of the leaderboard at The Amundi Evian Championship after firing a superb six-under 65 on Friday, bringing her total to 10-under-par after 36 holes at the Evian Resort Golf Club in France.
Lee’s round featured six birdies and a key eagle at the par-5 9th, earning her the day’s lowest score and a one-shot lead heading into the weekend.
“I didn’t hit my tee shots that well today,” Lee admitted, “but my putting was solid and helped me make up for it.” She’s coming off a recent victory at the Dow Championship and is now focused on staying in the moment. “I’m concentrating on my putter and driver, keeping my rhythm – and we’ll see where that takes me.”
The 26-year-old also shared her appreciation for her time in France, saying, “First is the view, then weather and then food – gelato is my favorite. So I love it here.”
Grace Kim One Shot Back After Early Tee Time Advantage
Australia’s Grace Kim sits just one shot behind Lee after a strong second-round showing, highlighted by four birdies in calm early morning conditions.
“It was definitely an early start, but I wanted to take advantage of the tee time,” Kim said. “I focused on hitting fairways and greens. I kept things simple, and it paid off.”
Her Friday included not only strong golf but a personal touch — a custom croissant-themed manicure in honor of playing in France. Reflecting on her progress since her early struggles at Evian, Kim noted how much she’s grown since shooting nine-over-par in her rookie year: “Course management has definitely been a key factor this week.”
Kupcho Keeps Pressure On
American Jennifer Kupcho is also in the mix after a consistent round of 69 moved her to eight-under-par. While not as clean as her first round, Kupcho leaned on her strong putting to stay competitive.
“I’ve been putting well all week – just seeing the lines clearly and rolling it nicely,” said the 2022 Chevron Championship winner. “I’ve played here enough times now that I’m starting to really learn the greens, and that definitely helps.”
Tight Pack Just Behind the Leaders
Three players share fourth place at seven-under-par: South Africa’s Casandra Alexander, South Korea’s Hye-Jin Choi, and American Andrea Lee.
Alexander described her round as “not the tidiest,” but praised her putting and ability to recover from mistakes. “I made something great out of not a great situation,” she said.
The South African, playing alongside India’s Aditi Ashok, said she’s enjoying both the on-course and off-course experience in Evian. “It’s going to be a chaotic weekend to be honest. Everywhere I’ve been in this city has had an Evian Championship sticker, so I’m pretty sure the whole town is heading in this weekend.”
Five more players are tied at six-under-par, including Ireland’s Leona Maguire, Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul, Japan’s Rio Takeda, India’s Aditi Ashok, and Australia’s Gabriela Ruffels.
World number one amateur Lottie Woad also impressed with five birdies on Friday, joining a group at T12 that includes Nelly Korda.
After two rounds, 74 players made the cut at two-over-par. The third round tees off at 8:30 a.m. local time on Saturday, with the leaders set to go out at 10:42 a.m.
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