Saso leads Ko by two strokes in second round

LOS ANGELES: Yuka Saso fired a second straight 64 to take a two-stoke halfway lead over former world No. 1 Lydia Ko in the US LPGA Tour’s Lotte Championship.

Saso, a 19-year-old from the Philippines seeking a first LPGA Tour title after two wins on the Japan LPGA, shared a one-stroke overnight lead with Brittany Altomare.

But she was six adrift when she teed off after New Zealand’s Ko stormed up the leaderboard with a sensational nine-under 63 that featured nine birdies without a bogey.

Undaunted, Saso was two under through the first two holes at Kapolei Golf Club in Oahu, Hawaii.

After her lone bogey of the day at the fourth she birdied the fifth, then charged with four birdies in a row at the seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th to tie Ko atop the leaderboard.

She snaked in a long birdie bomb at the 16th to gain the solo lead, and drained a four-footer at 17 as she built a 36-hole total of 16-under 128.

“I think I hit good tee shots today and holed a lot of birdie putts,” said Saso, who added that the wind was “a little bit of a factor” on the back nine. “I don’t really like windy conditions,” she said. “(But) I’m happy that I’m able to play good.”

Trying to just “enjoy the moment” as she plays on a sponsor’s exemption, Saso said she would “try to just do my best again tomorrow” in pursuit of a first LPGA Tour title.

At 14-under 130, Ko was alone in second and three clear of Spain’s Luna Sobron Galmes, American Nelly Korda, and South Koreans Ryu So-yeon and Kim Hyo-joo.

“Today I feel like I gave myself a lot of good opportunities for birdies,” said Ko, who came close to ending a three-year victory drought at the ANA Inspiration this month with a record-breaking 62 in the final round.