Day two at the Guardian Championship has come to a close after early morning weather delayed the start of play. The scheduled 7:30 a.m. restart was pushed back an hour to 8:30 a.m., with the second round beginning at 9:00 a.m. CT. The morning wave was able to finish their second rounds, while a few groups of the afternoon wave squeaked their way through their 18 holes for the day. As the day came to a close, Miranda Wang held the clubhouse lead with a few players still on the course, one of which holds the current lead at 13-under.
Cydney Clanton holds the current lead by one shot but still has six holes to play in her second round. Clanton is 4-under on the day with five birdies and a bogey, her first of the week, on her 26th hole played. The first-round leader will look to maintain her top spot when she tees off for the final round tomorrow.
Miranda Wang holds the current clubhouse lead at 12-under after her second straight six-under 66. Wang started her day slow, making two bogeys in her first five holes before catching fire for her next 13 holes. The 24-year-old made eight birdies in her closing 13 holes without recording another bogey. Wang will enter Sunday one shot back, but she is feeling confident in her game with 18 holes to play.
“In the last two rounds my irons have been really good. These have definitely been two of my best rounds so far this year,” said Wang. “The beginning of my rounds the first two days have not been that good, but I gradually figured it out and started to sink some putts. My first bogey today was my first bogey in like 30-something holes, so I kind of just accepted that one and the next one and was able to move on with my round.”
Jessica Porvasnik is sitting in the clubhouse in a tie for third after posting a 6-under 66 of her own. Porvasnik is in her second full year on the Epson Tour and is starting to get comfortable. The Ohio State University alumna has yet to get a top-10 finish this year, but her game is much more consistent. Porvasnik has shown she can also put up a low number, posting four rounds of 67 or better in her last seven events, including two rounds of 67 or better this week.
“Today was just a solid round,” explained Porvasnik. “I hit a lot of greens, had a good group, and finally started to make some putts. Reading the greens on Bermuda is kind of tricky so it was really nice to see some putts roll in. It is important to be on the right section of these big greens. I had one that was really far away, and it was my only bogey of the week, which was a three-putt.”
Defending champion Maria Torres sits at 8-under for the tournament and in a tie for seventh after her second four-under 68 of the week. Torres has not recorded a bogey in her last 72 holes played at the Senator Course, dating back to last year. The defending champion will have her work cut out for her when she heads to the course Sunday morning, but if someone can go low and apply pressure to the lead, Torres’s name should be at the top of the list.
“This course has something about the layout that is just so nice to me; it’s comfy,” said Torres. “There is still 18 holes left and I just want to continue doing what I am doing now and that is just staying in the present. You really have to know the landings out here, but because of the weather, it is a little softer, so it took me a few holes to notice that.”
Yiyi Liu is still on the course but is at 11-under for the tournament and in a tie for third with Porvasnik. Isabella Fierro and Siri Patchana will have to finish their second rounds tomorrow as well and currently sit in a tie for fifth at 9-under to round out the top of the leaderboard. Round 2 will resume play at 7:30 a.m. CT, with the final round beginning no later than 10:00 a.m. CT.
QUICK QUOTES
Emilee Hoffman (-7, T11) on her improved putting this week:
“I didn’t end the way I wanted to with that bogey, but I am still really happy with how I am playing. I am putting really well this week after struggling with the putter a little bit this season. I’ve done some fine tuning with my coach a few days ago and it just feels great to finally see the ball finally go in the hole.”
Fernanda Lira (-6, T19) on her 6-under second round:
“I really wasn’t thinking about my game too much, I am hitting the ball really well, especially with my irons, so I left myself a lot of short putts and it didn’t feel like I was making a lot of birdies. The greens were still rolling really good, even with the weather we have had, I felt like they were a tad bit slower, but it let you be a little more aggressive when you putt.”
Britney Yada (-5, T27) on finding her game coming down the last stretch of tournaments:
“I think it is fair to say it has been a rough season for me, I started off pretty good, but the summer months were tough. I don’t feel like I have broken 70 in what feels like three years, so the score today was nice. I hit the ball well today, hitting all 18 greens, which is something that I have not done in a long time either. Even with those positives, I didn’t feel like I putted well, so If I can figure that out, I feel like I can be dangerous.”
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