Defending champion Ruoning Yin raced up the leaderboard on day two of the Maybank Championship, carding a 5-under 67 at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club to share second with Hannah Green ahead of weekend play in Malaysia.

Coming off her second career berth in the Hanwha LIFEPLUS International Crown last week, the People’s Republic of China native kicked off her title defense with a 4-under 68 on Thursday. Yin made two bogeys and six birdies in the first round, two of which came back-to-back on the par-4 14th and par-3 15th holes, and sat in a tie for 21st early, four strokes back of the 18-hole lead held by Hye-Jin Choi.

Friday then saw the 23-year-old rip off four consecutive birdies on holes three through six to climb to 8-under total after the first six holes of the second round. She landed another punch on the par-5 10th hole to get to 9-under, but Yin erased that birdie with a bogey on 11.

The five-time LPGA Tour winner then moved to 10-under for the tournament when she birdied the par-4 13th and 16th holes, ultimately finishing at 9-under overall when she dropped a shot late with a bogey on 17 to finish with a 67.

“I feel like every part of my game is getting better every day, especially my putting,” said Yin, who hit 25 putts in round one and 28 putts in round two. “I said it in the press conference, I think my putting is the only thing that is not quite at the spot. But I feel really good after two days.”

The Maybank Championship is one of three titles that Yin has had the opportunity to defend this season. She and her playing partner Jeeno Thitikul, who is currently the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 1, finished T27 at the Dow Championship this year after winning the team-play event in 2024. Yin then tied for 26th at the Buick LPGA Shanghai in her home country a few weeks ago after posting a four-round total of 9-under at Qizhong Garden Golf Club.

And now, through 36 holes at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club, after opening with back-to-back rounds in the 60s for the first time since doing so at this tournament last season, Yin has put herself in a good position to successfully defend for the first time in her young career.

She currently trails Republic of Korea native Hye-Jin Choi by five strokes, who leads the way at 14-under, a large but certainly not insurmountable deficit that Yin will need to hurriedly make up on Saturday and Sunday if she wants a shot at picking up her sixth career victory this week in Kuala Lumpur.

“I think you just got to be patient and just one shot at a time,” said Yin. “Like I said in the press, I think 5-under every day would be a good score, so I'm just trying to play 5-under every day. If I can shoot lower, that will be great.”

Defending Champion Ruoning Yin in the Mix With 36 to Play at Maybank Championship

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