The second day of action of the Pre-Qualifier Marrakech is over with just 18 holes left to play to secure a spot at the Final Qualifier at Lalla Aicha Q-School.
England’s Rosie Belsham is in front at Samanah with Finland’s Elina Nummenpaa and French amateur Vanessa Bouvet top at Rotana, Wales’ Darcey Harry leads at Palm Golf Ourika, meanwhile American Annika Borrelli is in front at Noria.
Here is a more in-depth look at the second day of the Pre-Qualifier Marrakech.
BELSHAM LEADS AT SAMANAH WITH ONLY ONE ROUND TO GO
England’s Rosie Belsham started the day tied in second place but after 36 holes tops the leaderboard, to have a score of three-under.
“Today was pretty solid again, the course played tough out there,” said Belsham. “It felt like every hole was going into the wind, so I just played to the middle of the green. My aim was to play par golf and take advantage of some of the opportunities I gave myself.
“I birdied a couple of the par-5s today which was the same as yesterday. I hit a decent drive then three-wood to somewhere near the green on the 5th and 16th, then wedged it close and tapped in on 16, to hole a great putt on five.
“Another birdie on 18 today too that was nice to finish with, I had an awkward yardage and pulled it a little left then chipped in for a three.
“Tomorrow’s mindset will be the same as the last two days, just go and play golf, I’m not here to win it this week. That will just be a nice bonus. It’s just great practice and preparation for next week so just playing for pars and taking advantage of some good shots.”
With only one round left to play at Samanah Golf Club, Iceland’s Ragga Kristinsdottir is only one shot behind.
“It was an eventful and not a stress-free day. I made a lot of good putts to save par and keep the momentum going,” said the Icelandic player.
“The birdies on 10 and 14 were really good. I was able to have good approach shots on both holes that set up great birdie opportunities that I converted.
“On the back nine I just gave myself more looks at birdies, while on the front I was battling and managing to keep the momentum going and not drop any shots. I knew I was going to get birdie chances if I was patient enough.
“I took three weeks off after the last event on LETAS and then I slowly ramped things up in November. I stayed at home in Iceland working on my swing and fundamentals, which is paying off now.
“For tomorrow, I’m very chill I was in the exact same position last year at the same course. It’s just a matter of embracing the moment and enjoying playing in good weather.”
Nigeria’s Georgia Iziemgbe Oboh climbed 22 places to go from T25 to T3 on day two. The 23-year-old had four birdies in her second round to card four-under for the day.
Also tied in third place is Spain’s Miriam Ayora. The amateur had four birdies on the back nine to secure one-under for the day.
“Today was a little bit more challenging, but I was able to stay focus and hit some solids shots,” said Ayora.
“I was hitting great second shots into the green, but the second birdie gave me confidence to keep pushing and wanting even more.
“The mindset for tomorrow is to follow the game plan, stay focused, enjoy this moment, and give the best of me in every shot.”
The full leaderboard can be found here.
BOUVET AND NUMMENPAA TIED AT THE TOP AFTER TWO DAYS AT ROTANA
French amateur Vanessa Bouvet fired the round of the day with a 66 (-6) at Golf Club Rotana to be in a share of first place.
The 25-year-old was in a tie for 15th place at the end of the first day but went on a birdie blitz in round two.
Bouvet began her day with back-to-back birdies at the first and second, before adding three birdies on the trot between holes five and seven.
On her back nine, the Frenchwoman made two more birdies with only one dropped shot on her scorecard to climb into T1 with a score of six-under-par
“I thought today’s around went well,” said Bouvet. “I made two errors with club decisions, but the rest was pretty solid. I like the length of the golf course because it enables me to play every single club in my bag which makes the round a lot more interesting!
“Today, my approaches and putting were definitely the best part of my game. The putts I missed yesterday finally went in, which was really nice to see! I think my caddie and I did a really good job with club selection which enabled me to get close to the pins.
“After the LETAS season, I’ve been training six times a week, for six-eight hours a day where I worked on a few technical things regarding full swing and putting with my coach, which has helped me improve my game throughout the last couple months of training and regain confidence in the weaker parts of my game at the time.”
Finland’s Elina Nummenpaa, who was the leader at the end of the first day, produced a round of 71 (-1) on day two to be in the lead alongside Bouvet.
The Finnish player had three birdies and two bogeys on her scorecard to keep herself at the top of the leaderboard at the Pre-Qualifier.
“My round wasn’t quite as solid as yesterday, but the days are always different in golf,” said Nummenpaa. “I didnt quite get as close to pins as I would have wanted to. Also, the conditions were slightly tougher than yesterday because of the uncommon wind.”
England’s Ellen Hume is in solo third place on four-under-par after producing a round of 71 (-1), with Sweden’s Corinne Viden and France’s Agathe Laisne in T4.
Viden fired a round of 68 (-4) on day with her scorecard highlighted by an eagle on the seventh and birdies on the ninth, 11th, 12th and 17th holes.
“Today’s round was pretty solid,” said Viden. “I like that this golf course can be played pretty simple but also has its challenges. The last six holes require lots of focus especially when the wind picks up.
“The best part of my game is definitely my long game and giving myself birdie opportunities. I started off quite slow today and missed a couple of shorter putts. I stayed patient and hit a good drive on seven, then a hybrid to five foot and the birdie on 17 felt good too as it’s a longer par-3 over water.”
New Zealand’s Amelia Garvey and France’s Chloe Salort are in T6 on two-under-par with three players one shot further back in T8.
The full leaderboard can be found here.
CLOSE AT THE TOP AT PALM GOLF WITH HARRY TAKING A ONE-SHOT LEAD
Darcey Harry tops the leaderboard at Palm Golf Ourika, securing a two-under par round, and sitting at seven-under overall. The amateur started the day with a birdie on the first hole, continuing her form on holes 7th, 13th, 15th, and 17th.
“Today was a little tougher than yesterday,” said Harry. “The wind is a lot stronger so you had to really think about the different shots you were playing and I’d probably say had a lot of different holes played differently to yesterday.
“It was just a case of trying to keep the balls in the fairways and on the greens. The greens are running at such a nice pace that you can just roll them in, so I think if you’re playing safe, you can drop putts in.
“I had a pretty long birdie on 17 which was nice. Think it was 66 plus or something like that, so that was really good. Going into tomorrow I just need to play how I have the past two days. Hit the greens and putt well. Just taking it day by day.”
Sitting only one shot behind is America’s Zoe Slaughter. The 22-year-old had a birdie on the front and back nine, carding +1 for the round.
“Today was definitely difficult, different conditions,” said Slaughter. “With the wind, I was just grinding and fighting the whole day, getting up and down where I can, and I think I just played the best I could.
“I had a birdie yesterday where I think I sank a 60-footer and I was just that’s just something you don’t expect, but today was a lot harder.
“I needed lots of layers with the weather today and I think I just adjusted by hitting a lot of low shots and knew that I was going to have to have a different game plan yesterday and I think I executed that well. I’m just going to continue what I’ve done in the last couple of days leading into tomorrow.”
Italy’s Anna Zanusso sits in T3, having started the day joint fifth in the leaderboard. She has Nico on her bag this week, who is an LPGA caddie, and it marks the first time they’ve worked together. He was here last year so is familiar with the Final Stage courses.
“It was definitely a tough day,” said the Italian. “The wind picked up and the cold morning makes it harder, but I played very solidly. I think I made some good putts and kept consistent the whole day.”
Zanusso had back-to-back birdies on the 2nd and 3rd holes which gave her confidence for the round.
She continued: “I had a good birdie on hole two which started my round well, hit a good 6-iron to two feet, and then I took advantage of the par-5s.
“Tomorrow I’m just going to keep playing the way I have this week. I want to hit the 18 greens, every fairway. The more solid, I think I put myself in a good spot. I’m not going to put pressure on myself tomorrow, so that’s my goal for tomorrow.”
Thailand’s Kan Bunnabodee, who also started the round in fifth with Zanusso, climbed a place to sit one shot behind.
“I’m from Thailand so this is really cold for me. Yesterday was a bit better since there was no wind,” said Bunnabodee, who has spent time studying in the US in Indiana.
“The wind was picking up today from yesterday, so I was just thinking about it shot by shot, focusing on the round. Just needed to play good today, stay par, then if I have a chance, I’ll make a birdie. There were some bad holes for me as well but I bounced back for the last three holes.”
The full leaderboard can be found here.
BORRELLI SURGES INTO SOLO LEAD AT NORIA
Annika Borrelli continued her fine form at the Pre-Qualifier Marrakech taking place at Noria Golf with a second round of 70 (-3).
The American, who has been playing on the Epson Tour, began the day in a share of the lead but pulled ahead on day two in Morocco.
With only one dropped shot on her scorecard, birdies on the second, third, sixth and 13th holes propelled the 24-year-old to the top of the leaderboard.
Borrelli has a total score of seven-under-par at the 36-hole mark and leads by three shots with one round remaining.
“I really stuck to my routine again and played conservatively with the wind,” she said. “I had some good looks at birdie and some went in! I enjoyed being with my group as well and making the most of the day.
“Today was more draining to manage the weather and stay focused when needed to, I started hot and the putter went a little cold on the back nine so I’m looking to stick to the same game plan and continue enjoying the experience!”
India’s Sneha Singh sits in solo second place on four-under-par after producing an even-par round on the second day.
The Indian player has two birdies on her front nine before running into some trouble on her back nine with three bogeys in a row.
However, Singh recovered with a birdie on hole 15 to seal a level par round and keep herself safely near the top of the leaderboard.
Hong Kong’s Ginnie Ding and Argentinian amateur Ela Anacona are in a share of third place on three-under-par after they both carded rounds of 73 (E).
Japan’s Reina Fujikawa moved up the leaderboard to outright fifth place after a second round of 71 which included four birdies, meanwhile Czechia’s Patricie Mackova and Northern Ireland’s Olivia Mehaffey are on shot further back in T6.
The full leaderboard can be found here.
