Kia Classic - 2nd Round Update

Hee Kyung Seo, one of the KLPGA's best players and in this event on a sponsor's exemption, leads by one shot after two rounds of the Kia Classic Presented by J Golf.  Seo's bogeyless round of 67 on Friday propelled her to the top as she stands -7 overall.  In-Kyung Kim is in second place at -6 while Michelle Wie, Seon Hwa Lee, Vicky Hurst and Song-Hee Kim are tied for third at -5.

Scoring has been pretty tough so far.  Inky is the only player to break 70 both days and only 22 players remain under par through 36 holes.  What wind there has been hasn't been enough to noticeably alter shots, although several players have mentioned that it's hard to get a read on.  Which brings me to the greens - the poa annua grass has been giving everybody fits.  To use two of the best in the game as examples, Cristie Kerr has attempted 63 putts over the first two days and even In-Kyung Kim in second place has used 57.  They had better get a handle on these greens because the wind is expected to pick up Saturday afternoon.

First-round leader Na On Min (who hadn't played since last May because of a wrist injury) suffered back-nine woes en route to a 74, dropping her to -4 T7.  She's joined there by my old fave Jee Young Lee, who tied Seo and Wie for Round-of-the-Day honors with a 67.  Rounding out the Top 10 are Morgan Pressel, Pat Hurst and the lately-resurgent Stacy Prammanasudh and Inbee Park.

Several big names haven't found their stride yet.  I already mentioned Kerr - she made the cut on the number at +4 - but Jiyai Shin is E T23, Lorena Ochoa is +1 T27 and Ai Miyazato is +2 T37 along with Karrie Webb and Suzann Pettersen.  At least they made the cut, which is more than Angela Stanford (+5), Sun Young Yoo (+6) and Brittany Lang (+7) can say.  Some of the returnees I mentioned in my Preview couldn't shake off the rust - Kelli Kuehne's two days were a nightmare while Grace and Gloria Park never threatened the cut - but several did themselves proud.  Min you already know about but Mi Hyun Kim shot 70 on Friday and stands +1 T27 while Sherri Steinhauer is +3 T51.