India’s Aditi Ashok, who missed the cut in each of her previous three LPGA tournaments this year, holds a one-shot lead after the second round of the inaugural JM Eagle LA Championship on Friday in Los Angeles.
Ashok carded a 1-under-par 70 at Wilshire Country Club on Friday, leaving her at 6-under 136.
Cheyenne Knight, Australia’s Hannah Green and Sweden’s Pernilla Lindberg are tied for second at 5 under. Knight and Green each shot 69 in the second round, and Lindberg shot 70.
Alison Lee (second-round 71), Australia’s Sarah Kemp (68) and Sweden’s Linnea Strom (70) share fifth place at 4 under.
First-round leader Linnea Johansson of Sweden stumbled to a 75 on Friday, leaving her tied for eighth place at 3 under. Also at 3 under are Japan’s Ayaka Furue (second-round 70), Japan’s Yuna Nishimura (71) and South Korea’s Hae Ran Ryu (72).
Ashok ended her streak of missed cuts, which dated back to last season, at four events. She hasn’t finished in the top 10 of an event since 2021, and she has yet to win on the LPGA Tour, though she has four career victories on the Ladies European Tour.
On Friday, her up-and-down round featured five bogeys, four birdies and an eagle on the par-5 15th hole.
“Fifteen was really cool,” Ashok said. “I just holed out with like sand wedge from like 85 yards, so that was pretty cool.
“Actually me and my dad, we were talking (about the club choice), like going back and forth because it was kind of an in-between number, so we were almost trying to hit the next wedge because there’s water short of the green, but I decided to hit that one a little more full, and we got the number exactly right because it landed in the hole, so we’re like, ‘OK, maybe it’s not a bad number.'”
Looking ahead to the weekend, Ashok said, “Maybe (I’ll) just focus on hitting the middle of the green on the par-3s and staying in position.
Knight logged five birdies and three bogeys in the second round, while Lindberg managed four birdies and three bogeys. Green had four birdies and two bogeys.
Green said, “I’ve just got to keep doing what I’m doing and trying to minimize all the errors that I did make in the first round. There is lots of birdies to be had, it’s just, yeah, whoever makes the most. Still being aggressive but picking my moments when that happens.”
–Field Level Media