Stephanie Meadow and Leona Maguire produced some second round heroics to make the cut in the LPGA Drive On Championship – Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro.

Meadow fired a two-under 70 to move up to 45th on level par as Maguire slipped to four-over for the day and six-over for the tournament after 10 holes but birdied the 11th, 13th, 15th and 18th to shoot 72 and finish on the two-over cut mark.

American Ally McDonald shot 68 to lead by as shot in the clubhouse from rookie Bianca Pagdanganan from the Philippines and American Danielle Kang on 10-under.

Scores

McDonald, who started the day on the back nine, played her first 12 holes 6-under until she hit two roadblocks with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 5 and 6. 

“I was just thinking like I don't want to discredit my round just because I played a couple bad holes towards the end of the day,” said McDonald, whose 134 is her lowest 36-hole score since a 133 at the 2020 ISPS Handa Vic Open. “I put myself in a great position to hit some really good shots and it was really solid for I guess would've been 13 holes. Just the last two of the last five were just kind of few bad swings. I'm still striking the ball great and I'm looking forward to the next two days.”

McDonald said it’s exciting to be hitting the ball so well, after having many looks inside 15 feet. Leading after the second round for the first time in her career, the 27-year-old said she wants to stick to the game plan she started with since arriving to Great Waters.

“I think it's really easy as a person who has never won to get ahead of yourself. We all really, really want to win. That's why we do this, that's why we compete, is to put yourself in contention as much as we can. The next two days I'm just going to try to execute my game plan, stick to one shot at a time,” said McDonald. “If I find myself getting ahead, I need to regroup, back off, and be right in the moment, be present, and try to execute the shot I have.”

Rounding out the top three is Bianca Pagdanganan and five-time Tour winner Danielle Kang one shot out of the lead at -9. Kang’s 70 on Friday included four birdies and two bogeys, while Pagdanganan walked away with a second-round 67 to earn a career-best 36-hole score (135). Ariya Jutanugarn battled back after a bogey and double bogey on her opening two holes with four birdies and an eagle on No. 2, ultimately carding a 69 and going into the weekend in solo fourth at -8.

“I hit pretty good tee shot and I have like 195 and it's like downwind, so I hit 6-iron and I have 20 feet and make the putt,” said Jutanugarn of the eagle. “On that hole I feel like I have good commitment with every shot I hit.”

Recent Rolex First-Time Winner Mel Reid, three-time LPGA Tour winner Katherine Kirk and major champion Pernilla Lindberg are currently tied for fifth at -7. Four players sit in a tie for eighth at -6, including Carlota Ciganda, who along with Kirk, recorded the low round of the day (65) that included six straight birdies on her front nine, and last week’s Symetra Tour winner Matilda Castren. In all, 78 players made the cut at +3 heading into the weekend in Greensboro, Ga.

EUBANKS: MCDONALD MENTALLY PREPARED FOR A WEEKEND LEAD

She’s never been here before. Not just the Great Waters Course at Reynolds Lake Oconee, which very few LPGA Tour players had seen prior to the Drive On Championship, but where she finds herself relative to the field after two rounds.

Ally McDonald has never taken a lead into an LPGA Tour weekend. She’s been atop the board after day one, as she was yesterday, most recently at the 2019 ANA Inspiration. And she’s been close other times, including this past February at the ISPS Handa Vic Open, where she trailed Madelene Sagstrom by a shot after Friday. But sitting alone with a “1” by her name on Saturday afternoon is new for the 27-year-old.

“I’m obviously happy with the way I’ve played, the way I’ve struck the ball, and I’m really excited for another opportunity,” McDonald said after making six birdies and two bogeys on Friday to be the only person in the field to reach double-digits under par at minus 10. “I love to contend. I can’t wait to bring my best (the next two days).”

Learning to win at the highest level is an individual journey. For McDonald, that road has been longer and sometimes bumpier than she’d hoped when she arrived on Tour as one of the most accomplished amateurs in the world.

“She won at every level,” said McDonald-family friend Jim Gallagher, Jr., who is at Reynolds for the Golf Channel. “Junior golf, college golf, amateur golf, winning seemed to come easy for her.”

To read more of Steve Eubanks’ column on LPGA.com, click here: https://www.lpga.com/news/2020/mcdonald-mentally-prepared-for-a-weekend-lead-in-georgia

 

ROOKIE PAGDANGANAN CONTINUES TO IMPRESS AT DRIVE ON CHAMPIONSHIP

Bianca Pagdanganan is on a roll since her career best T9 performance at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. After the second round at Reynolds Lake Oconee, the 22-year-old is just one stroke off the lead along with Danielle Kang at 9-under.

“I feel really relaxed out there. I'm really enjoying this whole environment, and with the course being by the lake it's really beautiful. I mean, I just take everything shot by shot. I missed a green, but my mindset was just like, You know you can still save par,” said Pagdanganan, who stayed consistent after a first-round 68. “I guess it was more just having the positive mindset throughout the round and knowing I can bounce back from not-so-great-shots.”

Pagdanganan carded six birdies, saving her final one for her closing hole on No. 18 after a solid drive landed her 165 yards to the pin. It was one of the four birdies she had on each of the par-5s on Friday. She said there’s only a few things to tweak before heading out in the final grouping on moving day with Kang and leader Ally McDonald.

“Maybe practice a little bit more putting and then maybe a little of my woods. I don't know, some of my tee shots,” said Pagdanganan. “Try to get a little bit more confident, so maybe head to the range and try to work on those.”

 

PLAYING IN THE AFTERNOON? THEN KANG IS SET FOR SATURDAY IN GEORGIA

Some folks are morning people, some are not. For the only two-time winner of the 2020 season thus far, Danielle Kang prefers playing in the afternoon. Compared to her first-round 65 when Kang teed off after 1 p.m., she finished the second day 2-under and at 9-under overall. Still, Kang finished her day in a tie for second, one stroke behind Mississippian Ally McDonald. 

“I think I prefer afternoon rounds, to be honest. I like it when I'm warm, I'm all warmed up and ready to go. I don't like the cold. So early morning wake-ups are tough on me. I like sleep,” said Kang. 

A new course for everyone this week at Great Waters, Kang’s strategy is to continue to take it day by day.

“I think trying to get a feel for the golf course as early as possible will be really helpful for me. Teeing off tomorrow in the afternoon, so the golf course is going to play different again tomorrow to today,” said Kang. “I think it's just getting to know the golf course every day a little bit better and better.”

 

CIGANDA AND KIRK CATAPULT UP THE RANKS AT REYNOLDS LAKE OCONEE

Carlota Ciganda and Katherine Kirk both found a way to shine at Reynolds Lake Oconee, shooting the low rounds of the day with second-round 65s at the LPGA Drive On Championship. With a score like that, Ciganda said it makes sense that all parts of her game seemed to worked well on Friday.

“Pretty much everything [was working]. I think the putting was key, making a few more putts. I hit both par-5s in two, so that was a two-putt birdie an of par-5s. But then I made a couple good putts,” said Ciganda. “I mean, I still hit it close to like four, five feet, but then I made a nice 20-footer on 6.” 

Ciganda’s round included a string of birdies on her front nine – six straight, from Nos. 2-7. After recording one more on No. 12, her finish put Ciganda in a tie for seventh, jumping 57 spots from the previous day. Kirk, who went off in Friday’s afternoon wave, ended the day with seven birdies and one bogey, moving from a tie for 45th to a tie for fifth. Kirk said she was most thankful to get off to a solid start with four of those birdies through Nos. 2-6.

“I felt comfortable from the get-go. I felt comfortable yesterday, to be honest, as well. I only made two birdies all day which was unusual for me because I usually make a lot and throw in a few mistakes, too,” said Kirk. “Just nice to get off to that good start and keep it rolling. There is plenty of chances out there. It's just a matter of staying patient and attacking pins that are more accessible, which I did pretty well.”

CASTREN KEEPS MOMENTUM GOING FROM MISSION INN TO GREAT WATERS

Instead of resting between the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the LPGA Drive On Championship – Reynolds Lake Oconee, 2020 LPGA Tour rookie Matilda Castren took to the Symetra Tour to keep her competitive juices flowing. What may have started as a tune-up turned into her first professional victory, a wire-to-wire performance at the Mission Inn Resort and Club Championship presented by IOA. Her successful play seemed to follow her this week as she sits in a tie for seventh at -6 heading into Saturday at the Great Waters Course.

“I been playing well for the last month or two, so I just kind of wanted to keep going after KPMG. It was nice playing on Symetra. I played there for two years so I have quite a few friends there. It was a nice feeling to be back,” said Castren. “I managed to get a win, so it felt great to get my first professional win. And, yeah, just wanted to keep playing. Now I'm playing this and the next two Symetra and trying to get the U.S. Open spot.”

Castren finished strong today with birdies on her last three holes, but she said she’s looking to get back some of the shots she left out there on the course. Despite a roller-coaster day, Castren is still on a high from the compliments she’s received since arriving to Reynolds Lake Oconee on her Symetra Tour win.

“Definitely got a lot of congratulations from Mike Whan, for example. He texted me right after the third round last week, so that felt really special,” said Castren. “Got a lot of congratulations from the players here, even players that I don't know or just know their names. So that felt really nice.”

 

PLAYER NOTES

Rolex Rankings No. 62 Ally McDonald (66-68)

• McDonald’s 134 ties her second-best 36-hole score of her career; her best is 133, last recorded at the 2020 ISPS Handa Vic Open

• She hit 13 of 14 fairways and 13 of 18 greens, with 28 putts

• This is McDonald’s 11th event of the 2020 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is T11 at the Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio in January

• This is her fifth season on the LPGA Tour; her career-best finish is third, recorded at the 2019 ShopRite LPGA Classic and the 2018 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship

• She was a member of the 2019 U.S. Solheim Cup Team, with a 1-3-0 overall record 

• McDonald payed collegiate golf at Mississippi State and was a two-time First-Team All-American

• She played on the 2014 U.S. Curtis Cup Team

Rolex Rankings No. 223 Bianca Pagdanganan (68-67)

• Her 135 is her career-best 36-hole score; her previous best was a 136 from the 2020 Marathon Classic presented by Dana

• She hit 11 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens, with 31 putts

• This is Pagdanganan’s sixth event of the 2020 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is T9 at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship

• This is her first season on the LPGA Tour; she has one-career top-10 finish from the 2020 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship (T9)

• She currently leads the LPGA Tour in average driving distance (286.21)

• Pagdanganan played collegiate golf at the University of Arizona after transferring from Gonzaga University in 2017; she helped the Wildcats clinch the 2018 NCAA D1 Women’s Golf Championship

• She won the bronze in the women’s individual golf event and gold in the team event at the 2018 Asian Games; in 2019, she won individual and team golf medals at the Southeast Asian Games

Rolex Rankings No. 5 Danielle Kang (65-70)

• Kang’s 135 is her lowest 36-hole score since the 2020 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, where she finished in a tie for 49th

• She hit 14 of 14 fairways and 13 of 18 greens, with 30 putts 

• This is Kang’s 11th event of the 2020 LPGA Tour season; she has two wins at the Drive On Championship and the Marathon Classic presented by Dana as well as two additional top-five finishes

• This is her ninth season on the LPGA Tour; she has won five times, including one major championship (2017 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship)

• Kang crossed the $5 million mark in career earnings with a T3 finish at the 2019 CME Group Tour Championship

• She is a two-time member of the U.S. Solheim Cup Team (2017, 2019), with a 4-4-0 overall record

• She won the 2010 and 2011 U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship

 

CHAMPIONSHIP FORMAT

108 players; 72 holes, stroke play, cut to top 70 and ties after 36 holes

 

PURSE

$1.3 million USD; winner’s portion is $195,000