Feng has two-shot lead at U.S. Open

BEDMINSTER, N.J. — Shanshan Feng of China has the lead at the halfway point of the 72nd U.S. Women’s Open. Feng shot a 2-under-par 70 on Friday over the Old Course at Trump National Golf Club and stands at 8-under 136 after 36 holes.

Seventeen-year-old amateur Hye-Jin Choi, Jeongeun6 Lee and Amy Yang, all from South Korea, share second place, two strokes back. Seon Woo Bae, also of South Korea, sits in fifth, three strokes back.

The golf course played longer than its listed 6,687 yards (par 72) thanks to rain that persisted most of the day and was quite heavy at times.

Feng played a solid round of golf. Her scorecard was marred by one bogey at the 10th. She followed with birdies at 11 and 12 to extend her lead.

“Luckily, my ball-striking was pretty good,” Feng said, “so I hit most of the balls on the greens and maybe a couple times I was off the green and got up and down. So I think overall I did really well today.”

Choi shot 69 for the second straight day. She had three straight birdies to grab a share of the lead at one point but bogeyed the seventh and eighth (her 16th and 17th holes) to fall off the pace. Choi is trying to become the second amateur in history to win the Women’s Open title. The first was Catherine Lacoste of France in 1967.

Lee also shot her second consecutive 69. The 21-year-old is playing competitively in the United States for the first time. She competes on the KLPGA tour and added the numeral 6 to her first name because there are five other women named Jeongeun Lee currently competing on that circuit, one of whom missed the cut in this championship.

“I’m surprised because LPGA is my dream,” she said, “and it’s the most difficult, you know, known to be the most difficult tournament in the world, the U.S. Open. So that’s why I’m surprised to play well.”

Yang, the Women’s Open runner-up in 2012 and ’15, got within two shots of the lead but no closer.

“It was tough today,” she said. “It rained a lot on the front nine. I just tried to hang in there and keep grinding.”

The most memorable moment of the day was less about golf and more about the appearance of U.S. President Donald Trump, who spent a portion of Friday’s second round watching play from a special box adjacent to the 15th fairway and near the 16th tee. American amateur Lauren Stephenson was part of the group that was on the 15th green when the President appeared.

“It was a little distracting,” she said. “At (the 16th tee), there were a lot of people yelling and a lot of movement. I mean, it’s pretty cool to be in the presence of a President, so I guess he gets a pass.”

Americans Lexi Thompson, Stacy Lewis and Brooke Henderson were the next group to pass by the President’s box. The trio are currently ranked third, 16th, and eighth in the world, respectively, but the vast majority of the gallery turned their backs on the players to wave to and shout at the President.

Lewis claimed she wasn’t aware of the distraction.

“I did not even notice, to be honest,” she said. “This golf course was a little hard today.”

Thompson had a different view.

“When I got to that par 5 (the 15th) there were a lot of people around so I figured he was up there and watching,” she said.

Trump is the first sitting U.S. President to attend a Women’s Open. Presidents Warren Harding (1921) and Bill Clinton (1997) attended the U.S. Open while in office.

“Regardless of your political affiliation and whether you’re a fan of Trump or you’re not a fan of Trump, having a president at a women’s golf event is pretty remarkable,” said American Marina Alex. “It’s going to draw attention to women’s golf that has maybe never been in our favor before.”

NOTES: The cut came at 2-over-par 146. Defending champion Brittany Lang made the cut on the number. The list of players that missed the cut included Inbee Park (South Korea), Ariya Jutanugarn (Thailand), Paula Creamer (United States), along with American Danielle Kang, who won the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship two weeks ago. … American Michelle Wie withdrew from the championship Friday morning, citing an injury. Wie withdrew while playing the 11th hole, her second of the day. The 2014 Women’s Open champion played the last four holes of her Thursday round and part of a fifth after the rain delay. … Beatriz Recari (Spain) withdrew during her second round due to illness. … This year’s Women’s Open purse is a record $5 million. The winner’s share is expected to be in the vicinity of $900K. … Shanshan Feng and Jeongeun6 Lee will make up the final twosome on Saturday; they’ll tee off at 2:35 local time.