Hur recorded six birdies and bounced back to make par on the final two holes after a double bogey on No. 16. After battling through wind gusts up to 25 mph, Hur still felt she had a special kind of advantage.
“You know, living in Texas, which this is like a normal [wind] in Texas, so it helped me a lot when I practice with this kind of wind on the range. Looking forward to other two rounds and then next week as well,” said Hur, who will tee it up near her home at next week’s Volunteers of America Classic.
Hur said she tried to enjoy the wind and that learning to play in it helped her towards her win back in August at the Aberdeen Investment Standards Ladies Scottish Open. Hur also held the lead going into the weekend in Scotland.
Saturday, she will be paired with Sakura Yokomine, who sits in second at -9. Hur calls Yokomine her “older sister.” She said they have known each other since she was 12 years old, and that connection makes her feel more comfortable while playing in difficult conditions.
“[It’s] much fun on the course, especially with this kind of weather. You have to -- you need something like enjoy about, so talking a lot with a lot of other players,” said Hur.
Two players, Puerto Rico’s Maria Torres and American Marina Alex, are tied for third at -7. Tiffany Chan, who recorded the lowest round of the day with a bogey-free 65, is in a tie for fifth with Kendall Dye, Amy Olson and Pornanong Phatlum at -6.
OLSON BACK IN THE SWING AFTER BAKING BREAK
Amy Olson needed a timeout from golf. Before the IWiT Championship, Olson said she only practiced about 10 hours total in the break she had after the Cambia Portland Classic. She said it was nice to take some time away from the game, and have “like, a normal life.” Olson showed no signs of rust though after posting a 36-hole score of 138, heading into the weekend five strokes off the lead in a tie for fifth.
“I feel like I’ve played well here,” said Olson, “I didn’t I didn't play great last year, but I really enjoy playing this course and coming here. This was kind of home for me the last two years, so that was a lot of fun.”
But back at her real home in North Dakota, no golf did not mean no work. Olson’s husband, Grant, is the linebacker’s coach at North Dakota State University. For the last four weeks, Amy has been baking for the 16 linebackers on the Bison’s squad. “Every time the team wins a game, the next Thursday the coaches’ wives make treats for their husband’s position group,” said Olson. “I was literally house-wifing.”
Olson made a variety of treats – chocolate chip cookies and brownies among the weekly baking menu, about three dozen every time. She will miss the next week if the team wins due to the Volunteers of America Classic, but said the other coaches’ wives will cover for her as she travels. As much as she misses being home with her husband and the team, she said she is excited to be back out on the course, after her “mini offseason.”
“I needed that, especially going into Asia, just having kind of a stretch still coming up here. It gets to be a long season,” said Olson yesterday after a first-round 66. “Being able to come out and still play well and know that sometimes what your body actually needs is rest and what your mind needs is rest, it's just confirmation for me.”
NO EXPECTATIONS KEY FOR TORRES
Almost two years ago, Maria Torres stormed on to the LPGA Tour by winning a three-hole aggregate playoff at the 2017 Final Qualifying Tournament to earn the final LPGA card available and become the first player from Puerto Rico to earn full membership on the LPGA Tour.
Year two on the LPGA Tour has proved more challenging for Torres, as she has missed six cuts in her last seven starts. She’s off to a hot start in Indianapolis, with back-to-back rounds in the 60s to head into the weekend tied for third at 7-under par.
Torres said the main thing she has tried to work on over the last few off-weeks was to stay present, not put pressure on herself and to “go with the flow.”
“I've been working on a lot, on I think everything,” Torres said. “My wedges, on my rhythm on the backswing, the tempo. Yeah, so on my putting, too, I've been working on that, and starting the ball good and having a good pace. So basically the entire game.”
As a racing fan, Torres is especially fond of this week’s venue inside the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. While in town for the Cambia Portland Classic she witnessed her friend and compatriot Bryan Ortiz win the Global Mazda MX-5 Cup in Portland, and she jokingly told him: “Last week was your turn, now hopefully this is mine.”
ALEX SHOWS UP AGAINST CHALLENGING WIND
Marina Alex may have only shot a second-round 71, but it was enough to keep her in a tie for third heading into the weekend with Maria Torres at -7. Alex said it was a fight to the finish at the Brickyard Crossing Golf Course playing against the test that the windy weather brought.
“Conditions were crazy, so much different than yesterday, ton of wind from the start to finish. Some tough hole locations out there, too, with just the wind direction and how you were trying to get to the hole was not that easy,” said Alex.
Alex said despite an unfortunate shot into the water on the par-3 seventh that led to a double bogey, she was happy to make enough birdies the rest of the day and play well on the par-5s.
“It's a challenge for sure, I enjoy it. It's just exhausting, though,” said Alex. “At least I'll get to sleep in. If it's windy again, I'll probably feel a little more refreshed. Right now I'm ready to shut it down.”
PLAYER NOTES
Rolex Rankings No. 40 Mi Jung Hur (63-70)
Rolex Rankings No. 136 Sakura Yokomine (65-70)
Rolex Rankings No. 31 Marina Alex (66-71)
Rolex Rankings No. 143 Maria Torres (69-68)