Alison Lee holds a two-shot lead over Minjee Lee after a low-scoring day at the Aramco Team Series - Riyadh, where she equalled the lowest Ladies European Tour round in history; Watch day two live on Saturday from 10am on Sky Sports Arena
Friday 27 October 2023 14:42, UK
Alison Lee fired eight consecutive birdies and threatened the first sub-60 round in Ladies European Tour history on her way to setting the pace at the Aramco Team Series event in Saudi Arabia.
Lee carded 11 birdies in a brilliant bogey-free 61 at Riyadh Golf Club, with her burst of scoring around the turn seeing her jump top of the leaderboard and increase the likelihood of a history-making total.
The American started on the back nine and was one under after five holes after picking up a shot at the par-five 12th, before a birdie at the par-five 15th was the first of a staggering eight-birdie stretch that continued until a par at the par-five fifth.
Lee rolled in from 20 feet at the next to raise hopes of a '59 round' but saw her chances ended with two-putt pars at the seventh and eighth, although she matched the lowest-ever round on the Ladies European Tour with another birdie at the par-four ninth.
Minjee Lee sits two strokes back in second after also looking like a potential sub-60 contender, having followed a front-nine 31 with five birdies in a six-hole stretch from the tenth.
The Australian failed to convert her birdie opportunity at the 16th and bogeyed the par-three next, with a closing par seeing her post a nine-under 62.
Solheim Cup stars Carlota Ciganda and Charley Hull are in the group four strokes back in tied-third that contains Scotland's Kylie Henry and Wales' Chloe Williams, while English duo Gabriella Cowley and Cara Gainer both started with six-under 66s.
First-round leader Jasmine Suwannapura birdied two of her last three holes to grab a one-shot advantage at the halfway stage of the inaugural Maybank Championship in Malaysia.
Suwannapura recovered from two bogeys in her first three holes on Friday at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club to make five birdies in a three-under 69, lifting her to 12 under and top of a star-studded leaderboard.
Rose Zhang was in second place after a 68, while Celine Boutier fired a round-of-the-day 64 to share third spot with Australia's Hannah Green and Taiwan's Peiyun Chien.
Scotland's Gemma Dryburgh is in the group four strokes back that contains Solheim Cup team-mate Linn Grant and former major champion Brooke Henderson, while Danielle Kang is on seven under and Nelly Korda is a further shot adrift after successive 69s.
Chinese Taipei's Chuan-Tai Lin carded the lowest round of the day to earn a share of the halfway advantage at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship.
Lin mixed six birdies with two bogeys in a four-under 67 at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club, seeing her move to three under for the tournament alongside China's Wenyi Ding.
New Zealand pair Kazuma Kobori and Jimmy Zheng share tied-third on one under with Australia's Billy Dowling and Indonesia's Randy Bintang, with only six players in red figures heading into the weekend.
The tournament winner receives an invitation to the 2024 Masters and a spot in The Open at Royal Troon, along with being exempt from qualifying for The Amateur Championship.
The Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship is live on Saturday from 3am on Sky Sports Golf and marks the start of a triple-header of live golf on Saturday.
The DP World Tour's Commercial Bank Qatar Masters is on Sky Sports Golf from 9.30am, with the Aramco Team Series event on Sky Sports Arena from 10am. Stream the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LPGA Tour and more with NOW.
