Birdie burst propels Park to LPGA lead, Corpuz in pursuit
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Annie Park's eight birdies included a sizzling string of five in a row on Friday
Washington (AFP) – Annie Park's eight birdies included a sizzling string of five in a row on Friday as the American seized a two-shot lead at the US LPGA Dana Open in Sylvania, Ohio.
Park, whose lone LPGA victory came at the ShopRite Classic back in 2018, matched her career-low round with an eight-under 63 at Highland Meadows, her 11-under par total of 131 putting her two clear of a trio of players headed by newly crowned US Women's Open champion Allisen Corpuz.
"I just had some really good shots out there," Park said. "Recovered well from bad shots. Overall I played really well today." Park teed off on 10 and, after a birdie at 13, she put together five straight birdies from the 18th through the fourth.
She added two more birdies at the seventh and eighth to separate herself atop a crowded leaderboard.
Corpuz, who claimed her first major title at Pebble Beach on Sunday, produced her second bogey-free round of the week, firing a five-under par 66.
She was joined on nine-under 133 by overnight co-leaders Jaravee Boonchant of Thailand and Linn Grant of Sweden, who both shot 69.
"Really solid past two days," Corpuz said, adding that any fatigue she was feeling in the wake of her triumphant Open campaign -- and the travel delays that beset her afterward -- might actually be working in her favor.
"I think, honestly, the fatigue has kind of helped with the nerves a bit," she said. "Going out there (I'm) just focusing on doing the same thing -- try and hit good shots."
She said her grouping with former world number one Lydia Ko and two-time major winner Minjee Lee had been energizing. "I think it always helps to see good golf," Corpuz said. Ko was impressed with Corpuz's ability to maintain her concentration.
"I think tired is an understatement of probably how she is," the New Zealander said. "I'm sure everybody probably wants a piece of her and she probably hasn't had much time to herself. But she played great."
Neither Jaravee nor Grant showed the sharpness that carried them to the first-round co-lead at seven-under on Thursday. Jaravee hit just seven of 14 fairways but was pleased that she was nevertheless able to hit 16 of 18 greens in regulation. "Some of the putts didn't drop as I expected, but overall I'm still happy with how I played today," she said.
Eight players shared fifth place on eight-under par 134. South Korean Lee5 Jeong-eun climbed into that group with a seven-under par 64 that featured an eagle, six birdies and one bogey while former world number one Ariya Jutanugarn joined the group with a two-under 69.
Ko and Lee were among another big bunch on seven-under par and 15-year-old Monday qualifier Mia Hammond posted her second straight three-under 68 to join a group at six-under.
