Park Sung-hyun moves into a share of second place after the second round of the Aramco Korea Championship. [Photo=LET]
Park Sung-hyun moves into a share of second place after the second round of the Aramco Korea Championship. [Photo=LET]

Park Sung-hyun signaled a comeback by climbing into a share of second place at the Ladies European Tour's Aramco Korea Championship, which carries a purse of $2 million.

Park carded a 3-under-par 69 on Friday at New Korea Country Club (par 72) in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, to reach 7-under 137 for the tournament — two strokes behind solo leader Yamashita Miyu of Japan, who sits at 9-under 135.

Park burst onto the scene when she joined the LPGA Tour in 2017, sweeping the Rookie of the Year award, Player of the Year and the money title in her debut season before rising to world No. 1. She went on to win seven times on the LPGA Tour, including two major championships, but wrist and shoulder injuries sent her into a prolonged slump.

The damage ran deep, given a swing built around explosive distance and high clubhead speed. Her ball-striking became inconsistent, missed cuts grew more frequent and her world ranking plummeted. Despite extended rehabilitation and repeated swing adjustments, results did not come, and she lost her LPGA Tour card — forcing her to compete on the Epson Tour, the circuit's second tier, this season.

Rather than walk away, Park chose to push through. She kept up physical conditioning to get her body back on track and refocused her swing on rhythm and accuracy over raw power. Friday's second round offered the clearest sign yet that the work is paying off.

Park finished the day with one eagle, three birdies and one double bogey for a net 3-under round. "There were mistakes, but I finished well and I'm satisfied," she said. "After the double bogey on the third hole, my concentration actually sharpened." She added that a birdie drought on the back nine was broken by a fine eagle on the 17th. "It's been a while since I've been near the top of the leaderboard, so this weekend I want to communicate more smoothly with my caddie and stay focused on my game," she said.

Yamashita, who won the AIG Women's Open this season, posted a bogey-free 4-under round to take sole possession of the lead at 9-under 135. "I like this course," she said after her round. "Today was a bogey-free round, and both my tee shots and approach shots felt better than yesterday. Playing in front of Korean fans is a lot of fun."

Sweden's Louise Rydqvist also went bogey-free, collecting five birdies to join Park in a share of second place. "The greens are very fast and firm, so keeping the ball in the fairway is the key to scoring here," Rydqvist said. "This is my first visit to Korea, but my course management has been clicking. I've gotten over the jet lag and I'm looking forward to the weekend rounds."

Tseng Ya-ni of Taiwan shot a 5-under 67 to reach 6-under 138 for the tournament, placing her in a tie for sixth alongside Sara Kouskova of the Czech Republic and others.

Kim Hyo-joo, who is chasing a third consecutive title, managed only a 1-under round — three birdies against two bogeys — to sit at 5-under 139, tied for ninth with Lydia Hall of Wales, Patricie Mackova of the Czech Republic and Sarah Kemp of Australia.


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