Nicole Morales struggles at the Girls Junior Orange Bowl International Golf Championship
Nicole Morales carded a one-over par 72, in the second round of the Girls Junior Orange Bowl International Golf Championship, to share the second spot on the leaderboard, on Friday, December 28, 2012.
The tournament is being staged at the Biltmore Golf Course, and is one of the premier amateur tournaments in the world.
Morales got off to a shaky start, as she birdied the first hole, prior to conceding a bogey on the very next hole that she played.
She then lost another two shots on the fifth and seventh hole, followed by a birdie on the ninth hole, to reach the turn in one-over.
The back nine of the course witnessed her posting one birdie, against a lone bogey, to finish five strokes behind the pace set by Megan Khang, who carded a one-under par 70 to accumulate a three-under par halfway score.
Prior to the start of the tournament, Morales was listed among the hot favourites to record a victory in the tournament.
However, she has not been able to mount a title charge so far. According to the 16-year-old, she struggled with her game from the tee, which did not allow her to create birdie chances during her second-round campaign.
She told that she was not able to hit the greens on regular basis. However, her brilliant putting skills saved her from going way over par for the round. She now plans to tweak her game, in a bid to make a strong charge on the leaderboard.
“I short-sided myself around a few greens but luckily, my putting was in better shape today,” said Morales, who is a plus-4 handicapper from South Salem, New York. “Yesterday I was great from the tee, today not at all. Hopefully for the weekend I can get my entire game together”.
Delfina Acosta, the overnight leader, also joined her on the leaderboard, after faltering for a five-over par 76 on day two. She conceded five bogeys and a double bogey, against just two birdies, to slip down the leaderboard.
Sujin Lee, in the meantime, held the sole fourth place after carding a three-over par halfway score.
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