Nelly Korda and the team led by Georgia Hall sit at the top of the respective leaderboards at the end of a suspended day two of the Aramco Team Series at Centurion Club.
The second round was suspended at 1.40pm due to thunder and lightning in the surrounding area, but play got underway again at 3.10pm. However, play was suspended due to bad light on Saturday evening and of the 36 teams, there are still two left to complete their second round.
In the individual competition, world number two Korda leads the way on nine-under-par after firing a round of 69 on Saturday to establish a commanding five-shot lead. The American opened with a birdie at the first and made her next on hole 13, she made a superb eagle on 15, but dropped a shot one hole later before finishing with a birdie on the last.
“It was really difficult,” said Korda. “It’s probably the most brutal weather I have played in a really long time. I would say this was one of my best rounds this year.”
As for her thrilling eagle on 15, Korda perhaps surprised her caddie Jason McDede by reaching the green in two.
“Yesterday, when I played 15, the hole was downwind and was in off the left and Jason told me it was a three-shot hole for sure and there was no way I could get there in two. I just hit this bullet driver, I was hitting a controlled driver like a low stinger all day which was really helping me in the wind, and I got up to the ball and I just had a perfect number. I hit it really good and everything came together.
She added: “Getting to play this type of golf occasionally is really fun, where you get to be creative and hit these low stingers. I actually had a lot of fun out there, the weather may have not been too great, but when you’re playing well in these rounds you get to play with a bit more creativity.”
Home favourite Charley Hull started the day alongside Korda at the leaderboard summit. However, the English ace was unable to reproduce her first-day magic and slipped off the pace as a result of a 76. South Africa’s Nicole Garcia sits in outright second place on four-under-par after carding a round of 71 for a second consecutive day. Sweden’s Sofie Bringner and Japan’s Yuri Onishi are in a share of third place on three-under-par at the end of the second day.
Three players are in a tie for fifth place with Germany’s Leonie Harm, England’s Charley Hull and Spain’s Nuria Iturrioz on two-under-par. Austria’s Emma Spitz, Georgia Hall and Finland’s Noora Komulainen sit one shot further back rounding out the top 10 on one-under.
The quartet of Georgia Hall, Kylie Henry, Lea Anne Bramwell and amateur Michael Austick are leading the team event on -24. They sat in third place overnight on 14-under but came strong in their finishing holes. Despite incredibly windy conditions, Team Hall fired a round of 10-under-par which included a birdie on 17 and eagle on 18 to post the score to beat.
Hall, who rolled in the eagle on 18, said: “It is extremely breezy out there and my 3-wood only went 200 yards, but obviously I’m very happy with that. It contributed a lot to the team score, and we’ll see where we are at at the end of the day.
“I’m not so sure it will be enough because there are still so many holes to be played out there for so many people, it’s a bit of a wait-and-see,” said Henry. “I think we’ve done really well anyway and it’s still going to be a really good finish for the team. I think we’re pretty happy with what we’ve done in these conditions.”
The quartet finished their round in the early afternoon, having teed it up this morning, but despite this they sit on the brink of victory with just two teams left to finish. Team Hull, who led overnight, came up just short after firing a round of five-under-par on day two at Centurion Club to finish on 23-under-par. Team Garcia are in third at 21-under with Team Carta on 20-under in fourth and four teams in a tie for fifth place on 19-under-par.
