South Korea’s Ha Na Jang carded a superb second round 6-under 66 to join fellow country woman Mirim Lee at the top of the leader board of the HSBC Women’s Champion 2016 at 8-under par on aggregate.
The 23-year-old Jang enjoyed a bogey-free round in windy and, at times, damp conditions that saw four birdies and an eagle (hole 7), her second in two days. The nine-time tour champion has had a fantastic start to the season, which has carried through to the prestigious Sentosa tournament. She said:
“First round and second round, two eagles, so I feel very comfortable. I was saying to myself not to do too much thinking and just be patient. A lot of birdies, two more days, keep concentrating, I can do it!”
Like Jang, Lee also sailed through the Serapong course today without a single bogey on her card. For the 25-year-old six-time tour winner, it was a case of keeping it simple:
“Yeah, I just try, just straight, straight, straight and then make, make, make. No more thinking, just hit.”
Thailand’s Pornanong Phatlum and Suzann Pettersen of Norway lie one shot off the lead at 7-under par after rounds of 67 and 69 respectively. One shot further back and tied in fifth place at 6-under par are Amy Yang (Korea), Gerina Piller (USA), Sun-Ju Ahn (Korea) and Shanshan Feng (China).
Defending champion Inbee Park made a slow start with three bogeys in the first four holes but recovered somewhat to close the round at one-over while world No.1 Lydia Ko also fell to the curse of the first with a double-bogey, which the 18-year-old never really recovered from. Park is tucked in at tied-20th while Ko has slipped to tied-41st at the half way mark.
Singapore’s lone representative Koh Sock Hwee improved on her first round effort with a 1-over 73 that included five birdies. She commented:
“I felt a little shaky at the start but told myself to stay patient. I made five birdies today, which I am very happy about.”
The HSBC Women’s Champions is a four-day festival offering the best in golf, music and food. British pop band Take That will perform live in Singapore for the first time in over two decades, with a one-off concert on Saturday while Electronic Dance Music DJ Jack Novak from the US joins local DJ talents – DJ FARZ and DJ Li.A – to spin for fans at the end of each day’s play.
Celebrity chef Monica Galetti headlines the culinary element of the four-day festival. Visitors to the HSBC Women’s Champions will be amongst the first in Asia to sample the Samoa-born Galetti’s critically acclaimed dishes. A limited number of tickets are still available. Please visit www.sistic.com.sg/events/hsbc0316 for further details.
For more information on the HSBC Women’s Champions 2016, visit the tournament website at http://www.hsbcgolf.com/womensor official Facebook page: www.facebook.com/hsbcwomenschampions
