Blustery conditions turned Shadow Creek into a beast on Friday, and only a handful of players managed to survive. Lauren Coughlin fired a 2-under 69 to take the outright lead at the LPGA Aramco Championship, sitting at 8-under par through 36 holes.
The wind gusted up to 26 mph, and the firm, fast layout pushed the second-round scoring average to 76.614, up nearly three strokes from Thursday’s 73.816. Just 11 players broke par, and two of the pre-tournament contenders—Cara Gainer and Hannah Screen—missed the cut entirely.
Gainer, who opened with a 69 and was two back after round one, stumbled to an 85 after a triple-bogey on No. 11 and an 8 on the par-3 17th. Screen carded an 87 with no birdies. Both finished at 10-over or worse, well above the cut line of 7-over.
“It’s almost bordering on a U.S. Open-style setup,” said Leona Maguire, who shot 71 and is tied for second at 3-under with Hyo Joo Kim. “It feels a little bit like a major without being a major.”
Coughlin, a two-time LPGA winner, was one of only two players to break 70 on Friday, matching Amelia Garvey’s 69. She hit 10 of 14 fairways and 13 of 18 greens, highlighted by a 50-foot birdie putt on the par-3 8th and a 25-foot birdie from off the green on No. 16. She also drained a long birdie on No. 10.
“I missed that backstop that’s behind the pin, so I had obviously a pretty difficult putt,” Coughlin said of her 8th-hole bomb. “As soon as it went over that ridge I was like, ‘Oh, that looks pretty good.’”
After moving to 9-under with a birdie on the par-4 12th, Coughlin dropped back-to-back bogeys on 14 and 15 before rebounding with the 25-footer on 16. It’s her first 36-hole lead since winning the 2024 Women’s British Open.
“That’s been nice, just to kind of get over that hump again and make some putts again and see them go in,” Coughlin said. “It’s just finally getting everything going all at once.”
Kim, seeking her third straight LPGA victory, shot 73 and birdied 16 and 18 to join Maguire at 3-under. Nanna Koerstz Madsen (70) is tied for fourth at 2-under with Nelly Korda (74) and Miyu Yamashita (75). Yamashita, who shared the first-round lead, made triple-bogey on 17 after finding water.
“I think strategy is massive on this golf course,” Maguire said. “Really, you’re really playing chess out there, which is something I enjoy.”
