Shanshan Feng warms up to take sole ownership in Dubai

Shanshan Feng.

The wintry chill is in the air and Shanshan Feng is just getting warmed up. The Chinese ace fired another bogey-free round to take sole ownership of the leaderboard at the halfway stage of the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters.
This year's Order of Merit winner battled a painful shoulder and neck to stroke an identical 67 for a five-under on Thursday, to go with her 67 on the first day of the tournament.
The 26-year-old from Guangzhou played crisp golf, nothing fancy, and overcame a tough start to return with five birdies for an overall 10-under at the Majlis Course of the Emirates Golf Club.
Feng had birdies on the 15th and 16th before following that up with birdies putts on the third, seventh and eighth.
Record Order of Merit winner Laura Davies, who battled a torn tendon on her ankle, shot a bogey-free round on the day for an identical four-under 68 to leapfrog from tied fourth to second in the standings, two shots adrift of Feng.
Caroline Hedwell too enjoyed a bogey-free round for a four-under 68 to go with her one-under 71 from Wednesday. That vaulted the Swede from 23rd to third on the leaderboard, five shots off the pace.
Thailand's Pornanong Phatlum, winner here in 2013, was tied third along with Hedwell, after striking a four-under on the day. Like Hedwell, she too stormed her way through the field from 23rd after being one-under overnight.
Frenchwomen Ariane Provot and Jade Schaeffer were tied fifth on four-under.
Teeing off from the 10th, Feng hit her first shot into the rough before bringing it all together to make par. Then, on the 12th, she hit the bunker before recovering. She parred the next few before birdie putting the 15th and 16th. Her return journey too began with pars on the first and second before she shot a birdie on the third. Three more pars it was for Feng after which she notched two back-to-back birdies on the seventh and eighth.
Melissa Reid made the most significant jump of the day from 71st to tied seventh. Paired along with Feng, the Englishwoman shot the best score of the day, a six-under 66. She had started the morning at three over and Thursday's round meant Reid is three-under, along with two others - overnight leader and compatriot Liz Young and Thailand's Thidapa Suwannapura.
Young, who had a share of the lead with Spaniard Carmen Alonso, overnight, could only manage 75. She had struck a six-under on the first day.
Alonso dropped to tied 14th along with seven others including Rookie of the Year battler Denmark's Nanna Koerstz Madsen at one-under. Alonso, who had a fired 66 on Wednesday, was over par on the day with 77. Madsen shot 73.
Denmark's Emily Kristine Pedersen, who is leading the race for the Rookie of the Year, came up with a disappointing round of 78, to drop from sixth to tied 48th.
Maha Haddioui, the lone Arab golfer in the field, couldn't replicate her first round heroics and could only manage 76. The Morroccan, sixth overnight, dropped to tied 32nd.
The cut was applied at four-over and Europe's Solheim Cup captain Carin Koch failed to make it through, and so did social media sensation Paige Spiranac.
Sweden's Koch had a round to forget, shooting 80, while Paige shot 79 to go with her 77 on her professional debut.
james@khaleejtimes.com