Teen prodigy blasts pro field with 69, pulls away by 5

ANTIPOLO – Thirteen-year-old Yunju An continued her impressive run with a tournament-best two-under 69, building a commanding five-shot lead over her seasoned competitors in the second round of the Ladies ICTSI Forest Hills Classic on Thursday.

Despite having limited experience on the challenging Nicklaus course at Forest Hills, where she has played only a couple of times, An displayed composure beyond her years.

She carded a steady par 35 on the front nine before pulling ahead with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 16 and 17.

Her stellar play extended her overnight two-shot advantage into a five-stroke lead over fellow Korean Jiwon Lee.

An, participating in her first professional event, now has an even-par 142 with one round left to play.

Few anticipated the young prodigy would perform so dominantly against the more experienced field.

Her recent win in the Junior PGT at Mount Malarayat already showed her potential, but her current performance has exceeded expectations.

“My game? I don’t think it was bad,” An said modestly through an interpreter.

She recorded two birdies and two bogeys in the first six holes, parring the rest before finishing strong with her birdies on the final stretch.

Despite shooting the day’s best score, An remained humble.

“Today, I didn’t have a good shot, unlike in the first round where my shots and putting were good,” she explained.

An also noted the difficult conditions, saying, “It rained in the middle of the round, and it was a little hard.”

With the title now within her sights, An aims to keep her composure in the final round, focusing on improving her putting to secure her first pro victory in the tournament organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc.

Jiwon Lee, who made an impressive professional debut with a victory at Splendido Taal last July, shot a 72 for a 147 total, five strokes behind An.

Lee held her own with a front-nine 34 but faltered late in the round with three bogeys and only one birdie.

Gretchen Villacencio finished with a 73 for a 150 total, trailing by eight shots. Velinda Castil posted a 72 to tie Chihiro Ikeda and Miya Legaspi at 151, both of whom shot 75s.

Other notable contenders struggled to keep pace.

Kristine Fleetwood shot a 75, Seoyun Kim a 76, and Sarah Ababa a 77, all finishing at 153.

Early contender Florence Bisera tumbled to a disappointing 81 after opening with a 75, leaving her at 156 alongside Mikha Fortuna (77) and Kayla Nocum (80).