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Seaside golf can meddle with the most patient of characters. Lottie Woad had played herself firmly into the second-round mix at this Women’s Open at five under par, but the 16th at Royal Porthcawl was to bite back at English golf’s golden girl.
Woad’s second shot found trouble – it took Lydia Ko, one of Woad’s playing partners, to find the ball – and her third swing barely caused any movement whatsoever. Woad called for a referee, plus a second opinion, in her belief that her ball was now embedded and worthy of free relief. With the claims refused, she had to declare the ball unplayable. This grisly affair eventually culminated in a triple-bogey seven and a round of 70 which for so long had looked like further demonstrating Woad’s rapid ascent to the summit of her sport.
“There was a lot more good in it than bad,” said Woad. “I played really well for 17 holes, just that one hole cost me a bit.
“I think it’s probably the toughest hole on the course. The tee shot is hard to hit the fairway and then you’ve got three wood into a very strong wind. Anything that’s missing the target is going to be exaggerated. So I pushed it and got a pretty unlucky lie. It wasn’t too thick around there apart from where I was. So I couldn’t really do much with that.”
Woad admitted she was disappointed that officialdom had declared that her ball was not embedded. “I just had to forget about it as quickly as possible,” she added. Woad missed from four feet for a birdie at the last, meaning she remains nine adrift of the lead. By her own admission, and even owing for the vagaries of links, that may already be too far.
The broader problem for Woad and all others is that Miyu Yamashita has taken quite a grip on this tournament. The Japanese player’s 65 launched her to 11 under, meaning a three-shot lead over her compatriot Rio Takeda. Yamashita’s bogey-free round included a stunning back nine of 32.
Close inspection of Yamashita’s form indicates her prominence in Wales should be no real surprise. While the terrain might be somewhat different from what the 23-year-old is used to, jousting at the summit of leaderboards appears second nature. She has won 13 times on the Japan Tour and had 43 top-three finishes since April 2021. In this, her rookie year on the LPGA Tour, she has recorded 10 top-20 finishes from 16 starts. Yamashita shares her name with a Japanese wrestler, which must lead to some interesting moments when observers are punching letters into Google. The golfing Yamashita missed the cut in the Women’s Open last year. She appears on a mission to make up for that.
Lindy Duncan’s 70 moved her to four under, where she has Pajaree Anannarukarn and Chiara Tamburlini for company. Madelene Sagström moved into touching distance of the group behind Yamashita, the Swede’s 69 meaning a three-under total at the 36-hole point.
At two under, Porthcawl member Darcey Harry comfortably survived for the weekend. “I keep forgetting that this is actually my home course and I’ve played it before,” she said. “I have to keep reminding myself I know the course, so I don’t know why I’m stressing. I just have to try to enjoy the atmosphere.
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“I think the first two days are usually the most nerve-racking because you want to make the cut. Anything can happen on this course. You can get in trouble, big trouble any time. I definitely think today was quite a stressful day for everyone because the cut’s on the line. I can reset for tomorrow.” The world No 1, Nelly Korda, like Woad and Harry, is at minus two.
There was a golden moment for Steph Kyriacou, who made a hole in one with her gap wedge at the 8th. “I didn’t see it go in, which sucked, but the crowd went nuts,” said the Australian. “It didn’t damage the hole, which was surprising, so it was quite clean. My first official hole in one with no asterisk. Pretty excited. I had a hole in one in a practice round before. There were witnesses, first ball, but it’s not really the real deal, is it? There’s footage, people, tournament, major, it counts. I think everyone on my team is going to use it as an excuse to get drunk.”
Lilia Vu was among those to crash out of this major at the halfway point. Carlota Ciganda, Jennifer Kupcho and Sophia Popov, who won this championship five years ago, did likewise.
