(Seoul) Minjee Lee shrugged off the swirling wind and played 69 (minus 3) in the second round of the LPGA tournament in South Korea on Friday, building a two-shot cushion in the lead.

Lee has a cumulative score of minus-11 (133). The American Alison Lee made a bogey on the last green and handed in a card of 72. She is tied for second place with the leader after the first round, the South African Ashleigh Buhai (73).

The defending champion, Lydia Ko, is three strokes behind after completing the course in 69 strokes.

Minjee Lee’s cumulative score after two rounds is her best since winning the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open. A win in South Korea would be particularly memorable for Lee, who is 27, since both of her parents are originally from this Asian country.

The golfers benefited from lenient playing conditions in the first round on Thursday – only 10 of them, out of a field of 78, were unable to play even or under par. All that changed suddenly on Friday.

The game of Canadian Brooke Henderson was affected, but she still delivered a card of 71 which relegated her to six shots behind Minjee Lee.

The South Korean tournament is the second stop in a series of four in Asia. Angel Yin, who shot 68 on Friday and is four shots behind Minjee Lee, won the Shanghai tournament last week. The women’s professional circuit will stop in Malaysia and Japan over the next two weeks.