Lexi Thompson continued her climb up the leaderboard on day two of the Diamond Resorts Invitational. The world No.5 carded a 66 on Saturday at Tranquilo Golf Club at Four Seasons Orlando. She added another 29 points to her total, with the modified Stableford system, to move to +55 through the first two rounds. She sits in a share of ninth. Woody Austin tops the professional leaderboard after opening with a 59 on Friday. Austin has 73 points.
The 54-hole event brings together professionals from the LPGA, PGA Tour Champions, celebrities and athletes from throughout the sporting world to benefit Florida Hospital For Children. Saturday, Thompson was grouped with country music stars Colt Ford and Jake Owen.
“It was awesome,” Thompson told LPGA.com. “I’m a big fan of both of their music and it was just an honor. They’re really cool guys, non-stop conversations throughout the whole day and it was really relaxing. It was fun.”
Thompson has been focused on improving her putting during the off-season and was able to put those changes to the test in competition this week. So far, she’s happy with what she’s seeing.
“I feel great about them. I haven’t made too many putts out here but they’re good strokes, they’re just a little off in the reads,” Thompson said. “With putting all you have to do is be half a ball off and you miss the putt. It’s all about patience but I love how my stroke is right now.”
Thompson's second round scorecard:
Saturday, Brooke Henderson played alongside the NFL’s Brian Urlacher and Sterling Sharpe. She faired well in the grouping, carding a 68 and picked up another 26 points towards her +29 today through the first two days.
“Growing up in Canada we didn’t watch a ton of NFL but now that I’ve been in the states a lot, I really have a huge appreciation for everything they do and the athleticism,” Henderson told LPGA.com about her playing partners. “Getting to know those two guys and kind understanding a little bit more about what they do and how their life is out in the NFL is pretty cool.”
Henderson changed things up on Friday with her dad on the bag, but her sister and regular Tour caddie, Brittany, was back at work on Saturday.
“It was fun to change it up with my dad. He does a great job, and he’s our coach so it’s very similar, but it’s nice having her back.”
Henderson's second round scorecard:
Two familiar faces were grouped together on Saturday with Brittany Lincicome and Brittany Lang playing alongside amateur Mark Weston. Lincicome says the grouped laughed their way through the day with Lang keeping them on their toes.
“Anytime Brit and I get to play together it’s just non-stop laughing like my stomach hurts by the end of the day,” Lincicome told LPGA.com. “The stuff that comes out of her mouth is so funny and you know the other gentleman we played with, Mark, was phenomenal. He shot six-under today on his own ball and it was super impressive.”
Lincicome bounced back from a 74 on day one with a 67 on Saturday to earn 28 points and move to a total of +44. But Lincicome knows she’s going to have to go low on Sunday to move into contention.
“I think Woody is at 70 points or something so, I don’t know if its possible to shoot lower than 59 tomorrow but I’m going to have to do it to be in contention,” Lincicome told LPGA.com. “So, more birdies. I haven’t an eagle yet, that would be fun. That’s a lot of points.”
Lincicome's second round scorecard:
Lang carded a 69 and earned 23 points to also sit at +44 heading into Sunday.
“We had so much fun, oh my gosh,” Lang told LPGA.com. “Our amateur played so good. We had a great day. Brit is one of my best friends so we had a blast.”
Lang's second round scorecard:
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