Two-time LPGA Tour winner Marina Alex muscled her way up the leaderboard on Friday at the Maybank Championship. The New Jersey native fired a bogey-free, 8-under 64 on day two at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, a round that saw her make six birdies and an eagle on 17 to move into a four-way tie for second at 11-under.

Alex shot out of the gate early on day two, picking up two birdies in her first three holes to quickly move to 5-under. She birdied the par-5 5th hole to climb to 6-under, cooling off a bit with pars on her next four holes to turn in 33. The 34-year-old grabbed a birdie on the par-5 10th hole to move to 7-under and then made five pars before making her fourth birdie of the round on 16.

But the best moment of Alex’s day came on the par-4 17th hole when she holed out for eagle from 131 yards with a 9-iron to climb to 10-under for the tournament. She then closed out her round by draining a lengthy birdie putt on the par-5 18th hole to post a 64 and tie her low 18-hole score of the 2024 LPGA Tour season.

“I got off to a nice start. Made a couple of birdies early, and I think I turned at (3-under) and made a kick-in on 10. Hit a great 9-iron to a foot,” Alex said. “There is a middle stretch of the golf course that's not particularly easy. 14, 15, 16 are kind of tricky holes. I made a really, really great par save on 15. I think that kept my momentum going. I stayed at 4-under as opposed to dropping back to 3.

“I made an awesome birdie on 16 and then holed out 17 and made a great putt on 18. That closing stretch of holes was really solid, kind of propelled me up the leaderboard.”

It’s the second time that Alex has recorded a round of 64 this year, as she also shot a 64 on the third and final day of the ShopRite LPGA Classic presented by Acer in June. This is her first appearance in the Maybank Championship, but the LPGA Tour veteran had played in three editions of the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia before making her tournament debut this week, never finishing worse than T31 at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.

“We played the other golf course, but I absolutely love Kuala Lumpur and Malaysia, so I'm happy to be back here,” Alex said about her past experiences in Malaysia. “Obviously, this course is a little different than the other course, but as far as the city and the vibes, this is a great place.”

Alex would have teed it up last year in the Maybank Championship, but she failed to qualify for the event after a challenging 2023 season that saw her make just 12 cuts in 21 total starts last year. The 2024 season has been much kinder to Alex, as she has only missed seven cuts and earned five top-20 finishes in 20 events ahead of this week, three of which were top-10 results that came at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions (T9), Mizuho Americas Open (T7) and ShopRite LPGA Classic presented by Acer (T6).

This event is her first tournament since the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G in September, and having a couple of weeks off to rest and work on her game has seemingly paid dividends for Alex this week, particularly in the balmy conditions that have been ever-present in Malaysia. But it’s weather that Alex is more than used to, living and practicing in the humidity in Florida, and she feels like it might be a slight advantage considering the hot temperatures she and the rest of the field have been facing at the Maybank Championship.

“I know that players have been coming from Korea. Might have been a little cooler last week, and China was probably nice,” said Alex. “I've just been sweating it out in Florida for the last three weeks, so this doesn't feel all that different than being at home. I am sure by the time Sunday comes I'll be absolutely toast, but that's okay.”

Alex is currently sitting just one shot behind 36-hole leader Maja Stark at the halfway point of the Maybank Championship and now has more than a good shot at collecting her third career LPGA Tour title and first win since the 2022 Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America over the weekend. But with 36 holes to go and a crowded leaderboard, Alex knows she needs to keep the pedal down and keep going low if she wants to be the one hoisting the trophy come Sunday afternoon in Kuala Lumpur.

“It will really depend on setup. Today, it played longer. If it's set up the same, I think something near 20 is going to be a winning score,” said Alex. “It still is going to require me to play aggressive for the next two rounds because there are a lot of incredible players out here who probably hit it a lot longer than I do and maybe take a little bit more advantage of that. For me, I need to stick to my game plan and play as aggressive as I feel comfortable with.”

Marina Alex Tied for Second After 64 on Friday at Maybank Championship

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