Ryu Hae-ran takes solo lead at BMW Ladies Championship with two eagles in Round 2

Bogey-free 8-under 64 puts Ryu 2 shots clear; four KLPGA players crack top 10

Ryu Hae-ran retrieves her ball from the cup after making an eagle on the sixth hole during the second round of the LPGA Tour's BMW Ladies Championship at Pine Beach Golf Links in Haenam-gun, South Jeolla Province, on Friday. [Provided by the tournament organizing committee]

Ryu Hae-ran surged to the solo lead in the second round of the LPGA Tour's BMW Ladies Championship, which carries a purse of $2.35 million, powered by two eagles. Four players from the KLPGA Tour also cracked the top 10 to join the title chase.

Ryu carded a bogey-free 8-under-par 64 on Friday at Pine Beach Golf Links (par 72) in Haenam-gun, South Jeolla Province, making two eagles and four birdies. Her two-round total of 13-under 131 lifted her from a share of third place — where she had stood Thursday — into the outright lead, two strokes clear of joint second-place Kim Min-sun and Lauren Coughlin of the United States, both at 11-under 133.

Ryu has already won two LPGA Tour majors this season — the KPMG Women's PGA Championship and the Evian Championship — and added a KLPGA Tour title at the Hite Jinro Championship earlier this month. She is chasing her fourth win of the year, which would also be her third LPGA Tour victory of the season and the sixth of her career.

Ryu set the tone on the front nine, holing eagle putts on the second and sixth holes — both par 5s — after reaching the greens in two. On the back nine, she made consecutive birdies on the 12th (par 5) and 13th (par 3), then added further birdies on the 17th (par 5) and 18th (par 4). She closed out her round on the 18th, sticking her second shot to within about two meters of the hole before converting the birdie putt.

"I was worried about the wind, but today it was much calmer than yesterday, so I was able to attack the greens more," Ryu said after her round. "My drives were going far, which let me use shorter clubs into the holes." She added: "I didn't play well in this tournament last year, but this year things have clicked from the first day. I want to keep playing well through the weekend."

Kim Min-sun hits her second iron shot on the 18th hole during the second round of the LPGA Tour's BMW Ladies Championship at Pine Beach Golf Links in Haenam-gun, South Jeolla Province, on Friday. [Provided by the tournament organizing committee]

A cluster of KLPGA Tour players also positioned themselves near the top of the leaderboard. Kim Min-sun sits in a share of second, while Kim Min-ju is tied for sixth and Park Bo-gyeom and Kim Min-sol are tied for ninth — putting four domestic tour players inside the top 10.

Kim Min-sun posted a bogey-free 8-under 64 on Friday, matching Ryu for the low round of the day. Her two-round total of 11-under 133 placed her in a share of second.

Kim, who has won twice on the KLPGA Tour this season, is scheduled to compete in the LPGA Tour Qualifying Series in the United States next month. A victory this week, however, would earn her LPGA Tour playing rights for next year without having to go through qualifying.

"An unexpected opportunity has come my way," Kim said. "I'm going to play my own game without getting swept up in the faster pace of the LPGA Tour players." She also explained a recent change to her putting routine: "Since the Dongbu tournament, I've switched to stepping into my putting address in one motion. It still feels a little awkward, but I've been able to trust the putt speed I set for myself."

Kim Min-ju is tied for sixth at 9-under 135, while Park Bo-gyeom and Kim Min-sol share ninth at 8-under 136. Park, competing in her first LPGA Tour event, climbed the leaderboard Friday with nine birdies and two bogeys for a 7-under round.

yjc@heraldcorp.com