Pace fights to stay in France

South Africa’s Lee-Anne Pace battled bravely in the second round of the Evian Championship on Friday to join the weekend action in the season’s final Major in France.

The Investec Cup for Ladies champion smarted after a double bogey at the fourth hole, but some brilliant approaches and putting at the Evian Resort Golf Course helped Pace to wipe out bogeys at the sixth and eighth with birdies at the seventh and ninth. Having turned in two over, she battled to stay inside the cut, trading another pair of birdies for bogeys on the back stretch to complete the loop in even-par.

A second successive two over 73 will see Pace tee it up in distinguished company on Saturday.

Other players in the group at 146 include Dame Laura Davies, Germany’s Sandra Gal, China’s Jing Yan, Eun-Hee Ji from Korea, Australia’s Sarah-Jane Smith and the American quintet of Morgan Pressel, Jane Park, Christina Kim, Juli Inkster and Amelia Lewis.

South Africa’s top golfing export lags 14 shots off the pace and the Pearl Valley golfer will have her job cut out to catch American Brittany Lincicome, who replaced overnight leader Hyo-Joo Kim at the top.

The 28-year-old Florida native fired a 65 finish one shot clear of the South Korean, who followed her record setting first round 61 with a lacklustre 72 in the second round.

While Pace will undoubtedly pull out all the stops to improve her position of the newly designed course in Evian-Les-Bains, compatriot Ashleigh Simon finished well outside the cut, set at five-over-par 147.

The three-time Sunshine Ladies Tour champion racked up seven bogeys, three double bogeys and two birdies on her way to a disappointing 82.

Reigning Zambia Ladies Open champion Stacy Bregman also got her marching orders. Bregman caddied for Australian Nikki Campbell, whose Evian Championship debut was cut short by rounds of 75 and 78.

Meanwhile former US Women’s Open champion So Yeon Ryu also made a shock exit.

The recent Canadian Pacific Women’s Open winner bent the shaft of her putter when she slammed the club against her shoe at the fourth hole. She used the putter to tap in her ball, thereby using a club that was damaged other than in the normal course of play and was disqualified for violating Rule 4-3b.

PHOTO – Investec Cup for Ladies champion Lee-Anne Pace; credit Luke Walker.