Im Hyang's Breather "2nd Place by 1 Stroke"... Hataoka Leads

ShopRite Classic Day 2: Inbee Park Misses Cut, Jeon Inzi Ties for 10th at 2 Under Par

Im Hyang is teeing off on the 18th hole on the second day of the ShopRite Classic. Callaway (New Jersey, USA) = Getty Images / Multibits

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] Im Mi-hyang (27, Volvik) is taking a breather.

On the 3rd (Korean time), at the ShopRite Classic (total prize money $1.3 million) of the LPGA Tour held at Seaview Bay Course in Galloway, New Jersey, USA (Par 71, 6,190 yards), she added 2 under par on the second day and stood tied for 2nd place (10 under par 132) along with Mel Reid (England). Nasa Hataoka (Japan) leads with 11 under par 131, while C?line Boutier (France) and Amy Olson (USA) are tied for 4th place (9 under par 133) in pursuit.

Im Mi-hyang started tied for the lead, recording 4 birdies and 2 bogeys. She gained momentum with consecutive birdies on holes 17 and 18 and "stepping stone birdies" on holes 3 and 5, but it was regrettable that she made consecutive bogeys on holes 6 and 7. Her shots were shaky, missing the fairway 5 times and the green 6 times. She had 30 putts during the round. Being only one stroke behind the leader, she is in a position to aim for her third career win after 3 years and 3 months since winning the Scottish Women's Open in July 2017.

Hataoka dominated the leaderboard with 5 birdies and 1 bogey. Four players including Georgia Hall (England) and Jennifer Song (USA) are tied for 6th place (8 under par 134), looking for an opportunity. For Korea, Jeon In-ji (26, KB Financial Group) improved by 4 strokes to jump to tied 10th place (7 under par 135). Park Sung-hyun (27) is tied for 30th place (4 under par 138), and Kim Se-young (27, Mirae Asset) is tied for 45th place (2 under par 140). On the other hand, Park In-bi (32, KB Financial Group) and Lee Mi-rim (30, NH Investment & Securities) were cut off.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.