| Park In-bee tees on the first hole during the second round of the women's golf event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday. / AP-Yonhap |
By Kim Jeong-kyoo
Park In-bee fired a 5-under 66 to stand atop the leader board in the second round of the Rio Olympic golf tournament on Thursday, cruising in her quest for the gold medal.
The seven-time major winner was at a 10-under 132 to take a one-shot lead over Stacy Lewis of the U.S.
Chun In-gee and Yang Hee-young both shot 6-under 65 in the second round. Chun was in a five-way tie for eighth, and Yang tied for 17th with four others. Kim Sei-young shot a 2-over 73, for 22nd place with a 3-under.
Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand carded an even-par 71, tied for 8th with four others. Jutanugarn, considered a strong gold medal contender, is four strokes behind Park.
Park carded six birdies with a lone bogey at the par-4 seventh to become the sole leader.
She made lengthy birdie putts at the 5th and 9th, hitting several perfect approach shots. She hit a brilliant chip shot at the 16th. She carried out a perfect bank shot that bounced on the mound in front of the green and rolled close to the pin.
“My putting has improved. I putted better than yesterday. After the tee shot at the 10th, I didn't commit any faults on the back nine,” Park told reporters after the round. “There was no wind today. The scores on the remaining two days will largely depend on the wind. But I'll try to concentrate more during rounds three and four.”
Chun, starting the second round, stood in 19th place, five strokes behind the overnight leader, Jutanugarn. On Wednesday, a little lapse of concentration in the middle of the round prevented Chun from showing her ability to the full.
But she was calm during the entire round. Opening the round with a solid, powerful drive, she birdied the first hole. She had two eagles at the par-4 ninth and par-5 18th. She chipped in for an eagle roughly from 30 yards at the 324-yard par-4 ninth.
She had confidence in her swing and her ability to manage her score. Besides, nothing could distract her from her creative shot-making.
“One of my strong points is the ability to manage my score. I haven't been hitting the ball well recently. Today, I decided I'd just go out and play,” she said.
Yang started her second round at a 2-over 73. She scored a birdie on the par-5 first hole, and made consecutive birdies on the par-4 third, the par-3 fourth, the par-5 fifth and the par-3 sixth.
Yang bounced back from her disappointment and the damage she had sustained on Wednesday. After making the turn in the 5-under 30, she added two birdies at holes 17 and 18, with a bogey at the par-4 12th.
Yang ended up 6-under 65 and was tied for 17th place. She regained her usual ball-striking ability, showing an almost flawless round.
“This was a real turnaround,” Yang said. “I hit my drives well today, which gave me easier second shots and many short birdie opportunities.”
Kim, however, finished the second round at a 2-over 73 for an overall score of a 3-under 139. Having an up-and-down day, Kim birdied two holes, bogeying two holes with a double bogey. She's tied for 22nd with five other players including Lydia Ko and the American Lexi Thompson.
Kim Jeong-kyoo is a Korea Times golf columnist. He can be reached at kimjstar@hanmail.net.