Mizuno Classic Second-Round Notes and Interviews

07 Nov 2009 - 09:46:04

Mizuno Classic Kintetsu Kashikojima Country Club Shima-shi, Mie, JapanNovember 7, 2009 Second-round Notes Song ties career-low to take lead at Mizuno Classic.  After a competitive second round with near-perfect conditions at the 2009 Mizuno Classic became official, South Korean player Bo Bae Song (68-65=133) was all alone at the top of the leaderboard at 11-under-par.  Song fired a 7-under-par 65 on Saturday after recording eight birdies and one bogey, which tied her career-low she previously set back in 2007.  To go along with the near-perfect weather conditions in Shima-shi, Mie, Japan, Song had a near-perfect start to her day as well.  On the front nine she recorded six birdies on holes one, three, five, seven, eight and nine, making the turn at 6-under-par 30 at the halfway point.  On the back side of the 6,506-yard course at Kintetsu Kashikojima Country Club, Song added a bogey on 13 and birdies on 15 and 18.  Song will begin the final round of the Mizuno Classic with a one-stroke advantage over two players, Akane Iijima of Japan and South Korea's In-Kyung Kim, who both have overall 10-under-par 134 scores.  Iijima (70-64) had the round of the day at 8-under-par 64, which tied the course record at Kintetsu Kashikojima Country Club.  The other professional tied for second is Kim (69-65), a three-year member of the LPGA Tour and two-time Tour winner.  Kim had a bogey-free, seven-birdie performance in the second round, and after two rounds in Shima-shi, Mie, Japan, has added 12 birdies and two first-round bogeys to her stat sheet.  Earlier this year, the 21-year-old won the LPGA State Farm Classic, and in 2008 she became a Rolex First-Time Winner at the Longs Drugs Challenge.       Players go low at Mizuno Classic.  Looking at the leaderboard of the Mizuno Classic will prove that players are taking full advantage of the near-perfect course and weather conditions in Shima-shi, Mie, Japan.  Of the 78 professionals in this week's field, 58 players are at even-par or better through two rounds of action.  Of those, 52 are under par through 36 holes.  The leader, South Korea's Bo Bae Song, is in at 11-under-par 133 (68-65), with 20 players within five strokes of her.  Sunday's final round should be a fight for the finish as the best players in the world play for a share of the $1.4 million purse.         Miyazato, Ueda tied for fifth.  Playing on home soil at this week's Mizuno Classic, Ai Miyazato and Momoko Ueda have identical 36-hole scores of 8-under-par 136, and both are part of an eight-player tie for fifth on the leaderboard.  The Japanese stars are only two strokes back from the two-day leader Bo Bae Song (68-65=133, -11).  Miyazato, a native of Okinawa, which is approximately five hours from Shima-shi, Mie in Japan, recorded seven birdies and two bogeys on Saturday, bringing her two-day total to 10 birdies and two bogeys.  Miyazato became a Rolex First-Time Winner earlier this season at the Evian Masters Presented by Société Générale.  Ueda, who hails from Kumamoto, which is also roughly five hours away from this week's event, joins Miyazato in the group of players at 8-under-par overall.  Ueda had a bogey-free day, recording birdies on holes one, four, seven and 15.  The 23-year-old has played in 17 LPGA tournaments this year, making 14 cuts and finishing in the top-10 one time.  She recorded her career-best finish as a member of the LPGA Tour at this year's CN Canadian Women's Open, where she tied for second.  In 2007 at the Mizuno Classic, Ueda won the event as a non-member of the LPGA Tour.  Defending champion Shin remains in striking distance.  The 2009 LPGA Tour Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Jiyai Shin, and this week's defending champion, is 8-under-par 136 (69-67) at the Mizuno Classic.  Shin recorded birdies on holes two, seven, 13, 15, 16 and 18, with a bogey on six, to get to her 136 overall score.  The South Korean player is only three strokes back from the leader,  fellow South Korean Bo Bae Song (68-65=133, -11), and is in the hunt to earn her fourth LPGA Tour victory of the 2009 season.  Having already claimed the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year honor over her fellow first-year players, Shin holds a slim lead in the Rolex Player of the Year standings as well.  Should Shin successfully win both year-end awards, she would become the first to do so since LPGA Tour and World Golf Halls of Famer Nancy Lopez in 1978.  Shin is also the current top-money winner on Tour with more than $1.6 in season earnings.  DNS.  Ji-Hee Lee and Hiromi Takesue did not start the Mizuno Classic.First-round Notes and InterviewsPre-tournament InterviewsTournament Preview