Chun tightens grip at PGA Championship

BETHESDA: Chun In-gee extended her lead at the Women’s PGA Championship on Friday, firing a three-under-par 69 to open up a six-stroke advantage at the halfway stage as she hunts down a third major title.

The 27-year-old South Korean had demolished Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland, in Thursday’s first round, shooting a course record eight-under-64 that left awed rivals in disbelief -- and five shots adrift.

Chun found the going slightly harder on Friday, opening with three early birdies before back-to-back bogeys checked her progress just before the turn. However, she regained those two strokes with birdies on the 10th and 18th to maintain a vice-like grip on the lead heading into the weekend on 11 under with a 36-hole aggregate 133.

Chun’s nearest rivals are New Zealand’s Lydia Ko, who moved up the leaderboard with a five-under-par 67, and in-form Jennifer Kupcho, who shot seven birdies and three bogeys in a four-under-par 68.