Julia López (-6) maintains her cruising speed at the Buick LPGA Classic. The golfer from Benahavís has added another round of 69 strokes this Friday in Shanghai and continues her bid for victory on the table. She is two steps away from the top 10, seven strokes behind the lead held solely by Japan’s Minami Katsu (-13).
Julia has delivered a card of three under par, improving as the day went on, just like on Thursday. The first thing she encountered in the day, after signing three consecutive pars, was a bogey on the 4th hole. From that moment, she went four under par with birdies on holes 5, 9, 11, and 13.
It has been another great round of golf. The first day also saw her improve, with a final eagle that placed her very close to the leading positions. The Andalusian player knows that to win, she will need to step up her game. At least a ten under par over the weekend to give herself a chance. Either way, the top 10 is within reach and would be another great result in a magnificent rookie season.
Interestingly, Julia played much better from tee to green this Friday, but the putter was colder. She really didn’t manage to make the most of her great long game, hitting no less than 16 greens. If she can get everything to align over the weekend, she has shown she can go very low and will give herself a chance on Sunday.
Katsu has a two-stroke lead over Korea’s Ina Yoon (-11), three over Lindy Duncan (-10) and Jenny Bae (-10), and four over Somi Lee (-9), Jeeno Thitikul (-9), and Arpichaya Yubol (-9). Obviously, the big favourite for the title at the moment is Thailand’s Thitikul.
Carlota Ciganda (PAR), the other Spaniard present in Shanghai, had a tough day at the office with a card of 75 strokes. She has lost a lot of ground in the standings, but there is no cut this week, so she will still have chances to make up ground over the weekend.
