Hailey Borja of Michigan hits her tee shot on Thursday on the 1st hole at Champions Retreat.
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The storms came. But the rain could not put out the fire that Champions Retreat is breathing. The second round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur did not begin till 3 p.m. local time on Thursday, and while the players eventually returned, so did a testing golf course. Here are three things you need to know after Thursday’s play in Augusta, Ga.
Three players tied for the lead
Four players were in red figures for the day when play was suspended due to darkness — and two of them were tied for the lead, and a third was a shot back.
In front, at even-par overall, were Beatrice Wallin of Florida State, Amari Avery of USC, and Hailey Borja of Michigan, while Jensen Castle of Kentucky, Latanna Stone of LSU, Benedetta Moresco of Alabama, and Amalie Leth-Nissen of Denmark were a shot back. Wallin (one-under), Avery (one-under) and Castle (two-under) were under par for the day, as was Shinsil Bang of Korea (one-under), who was three shots behind the leaders.
The scoring was similar to Wednesday’s first round, where only five of the 72 players broke par.
“Greens were a little bit softer today, so the ball was more receptive, and it was checking a little bit harder,” said Borja, who was one-over through 11 holes. “So not having to take so much yardage so that it rolls off as much. As well as the fairways are a little bit wet, but as long as you hit it clean, I think you’re good. Not too bad out there.
“Yeah, it’s been a long day. I was originally supposed to go off at 9:06 and ended up going out at 4:36. Definitely a long day, but it was a day to be patient. So that’s exactly what I did.”
Top-ranked amateur may miss cut
Rose Zhang, the world’s top-ranked amateur, has work to do to make the 36-hole cut. She’s at five-over overall through 14 holes, and if the leaderboard were to continue to hold there, Zhang would be in an 11-player-for-five-spots playoff.
The top 30 players after the second round will play in Saturday’s final round, which will be played at Augusta National.
What does Friday look like?
Friday will be a busy one. Beginning at 7:30 a.m., 63 players will finish their second rounds, then all of the amateurs will play a practice round at Augusta National.
Less than a week later at the course, the Masters begins.
“Yeah, I think all of it, just seeing Augusta in general, again, is just the best thing ever,” Borja said. “Like everything was just cut perfectly.”
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