Guntas Sandhu is lone Indian to make cut at WAAP
A solitary birdie against two bogeys was enough for Guntas Sandhu to squeeze into the weekend rounds as two of the four Indians made the halfway cut at the Women’s Amateur Asia Pacific Championship at Royal Wellington on Friday. Guntas, who opened with a 71, carded a 73 in rainy conditions in the second round to move into the top 20 at tied-19. The only other Indian to make the cut was Ananyaa Sood (74-75) and she was T-43. Zara Anand (79-79) and Jia Kataria (81-81) missed the cut. Yunseo Yang wrote her name into the record books as she swept into a three-stroke lead at the halfway stage.
Defying heavy rain showers and humid conditions, the 18-year-old Korean followed up an opening-day 64 with a five-under-par 67 at Royal Wellington. Bidding to become the first Korean winner of the region’s pre-eminent women’s amateur championship, Yang, 44th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, finds herself in a commanding position heading into Saturday’s penultimate round.
Her closest pursuers are fellow-Korean Gyu Been Kim and Rianne Malixi, the 2024 US Women’s Amateur winner from the Philippines. On a day that saw the powerful Korean contingent flex their muscles, Sumin Hong shot a 68 for a share of fourth place with Japan’s Ai Goto on 137, while Soomin Oh, runner-up last year, also returned a 68 that elevated her into joint sixth place on 138 alongside Australian Jazy Roberts.
