In Gee Chun surges to halfway lead at Women’s Open

South Korea’s In Gee Chun has a fourth major title – and second of the season – in her sights after claiming the halfway lead in the £6million AIG Women’s Open.

Chun, who won the Women’s PGA Championship at Congressional in June despite consecutive weekend rounds of 75, carded six birdies and a solitary bogey in a second round of 66 at Muirfield.

That gave the 27-year-old a halfway total of eight under par and a one-shot lead over South Africa’s Ashleigh Buhai and Sweden’s Madelene Sagstrom, with seven-time major winner Inbee Park a shot further back.

Sunday’s winner will claim £903,000 from the record prize fund, but Chun revealed she is also motivated by a somewhat smaller sum of money on offer.

“Before the start of the tournament my caddie Dean and I talked about the course and had a little bet,” Chun explained.

“If I have a bogey-free round he’s going to buy me dinner and pay me 100 dollars each day, so before each round it’s like setting another goal.

“I think that mindset helped a lot on the course; I had two bogeys over the last two days but I want to keep trying for a bogey-free round.”

Buhai looked on course to claim the halfway lead when she made an eagle and four birdies to race to the turn in 30, but after picking up another shot on the 11th the 33-year-old could not make any further gains and dropped her only shot of the day on the last.

That meant Buhai matched the 65 posted earlier in the day by last year’s joint runner-up Sagstrom, while overnight leader Hinako Shibuno followed her opening 65 with a 73 to fall four shots off the pace on four under.

Scotland’s Louise Duncan also carded a 73 to slip back to two under alongside Ireland’s Leona Maguire, with the English trio of Jodi Ewart Shadoff, Charley