National team golfer Yang Yun-seo surges to 2-shot lead at Korea Women's Open

National team golfer Yang Yun-seo, a third-year student at Incheon Girls' High School Correspondence High School, has taken the outright lead at the Mercedes-Benz Korea Women's Open, the country's premier national title with a purse of 1.5 billion won (about $982,000).

Yang fired a 4-under-par 67 Friday at Lakewood Country Club's Sangil and Supgil courses (par 71) in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, carding five birdies against one bogey in the second round. Her two-day total of 4-under 138 puts her two strokes clear of joint runners-up Choi Ga-bin and Choi Ye-bon.

"I told myself to play it safe, and things went the way I planned — I got through the round without any major trouble," Yang said after her round. "I tried not to think about being in the lead while I was making birdies. The fairways are narrow, so I focused on keeping the ball in play. My approach shots held up well too."

She added that international experience had helped her prepare for the conditions. "I've played in various overseas events, including the US Women's Open, and that gave me a feel for fast greens like the ones here," she said. "The rough on this course is tricky — you never quite know where the ball will end up."

Yang noted that this is her fourth appearance at the Korea Women's Open. "I missed the cut twice and finished tied for 57th once," she said. "I always set making the cut as my first goal at any tournament. This time I aimed for a top-10 finish. It would mean a lot to perform well here as a national team player."

Choi Ga-bin carded four birdies and three bogeys for a 1-under round to share second place, but consecutive birdies on holes 16 and 17 were not enough to draw level with the leader. "I didn't get greedy looking at the pin positions today," Choi said. "Everything went to plan through the 15th hole and I made my birdies, but the pressure got to me near the end and my concentration slipped a little — still, I finished well enough."

Choi Ye-bon traded three birdies for three bogeys to post an even-par round. After 36 holes, Yang, Choi Ga-bin and Choi Ye-bon are the only three players in the field under par.

First-round leader Kim Ga-hee 2 dropped four shots with four bogeys and no birdies, falling to a two-day total of even-par 142 to join Kim Min-sol, Jeon Woo-ri and Ko Ji-won in a four-way tie for fourth.

Veteran Shin Ji-yae dropped two shots to sit at 2-over 144, tied for 15th. Park Min-ji also made the cut, albeit narrowly, in a tie for 54th.