Ko, Kim up by one at Marathon Classic
World number one Lydia Ko and Hyo Joo Kim carded a five-under-par 66 and three-under-par 68 to take a one-shot lead at the Marathon Classic on Friday.
Ko and Kim currently sit on eight under and they are closely followed by Ha Na Jang and Alison Lee, who are in a tie for third on seven under.
Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn, Mirim Lee and Lee Lopez are two strokes adrift of the lead in a tie for fifth, while defending champion Chella Choi failed to make the cut.
Ko, who started off the day in a tie for seventh, began her round with a trio of birdies and a bogey on her front nine. She continued to excel on her back nine as she made three more birdies, which saw her surge up the leaderboard and end the day in a share of the lead.
Kim, who maintained her position on the leaderboard, started her round with two birdies on the front nine. The South Korean made another one at the 10th, but faltered with a bogey at the next hole. She atoned for her mistake though as a birdie at the 17th ensured she stayed in a share of the lead.
After a front nine that consisted of nothing but pars, Jang, who fired a 67, shifted her game to the next level on her back nine as she made four birdies, three of which came on her last five holes, to complete a bogey-free round.
Lee kicked off her round of 66 with a bogey at the 13th, but recovered to make consecutive birdies at the 16th and 17th. She continued to turn her fortunes around on her back nine as she made a birdie at the third before making three in a row from the seventh to ninth.
Meanwhile, Choi struggled once again on Friday as she followed up her 72 in the first round with a 74, which consisted of a birdie and four bogeys.
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