Pornanong Phatlum says she is ‘very excited’ to be leading at the halfway stage of the Ricoh Women’s British Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club, where she has gone bogey-free for 36 holes.
A second straight round of 67 allowed the winner of 16 professional titles to move one ahead of the field at the top of the leader board on Friday. She birdied the fourth, sixth and seventh, to turn in 32 and then picked up two more shots at the 10th and 16th holes, to come home in 35.
The 28-year-old is bidding to become the second Thai Major winner after world No.1 Ariya Jutanugarn won the championship at Woburn two years ago, followed by this year’s US Women’s Open.
Phatlum told the gathered media: “I’m very happy right now and I’m just going to be really excited tonight and I will try to calm down for tomorrow.”
This is her first time playing at Royal Lytham and only the second time she has made the cut in the championship, but said that the secret to her consistency was keeping out of the bunkers.
She said: “I tell myself like, wow, I’m play really good on like links golf course. So like just keep telling myself like yeah, I’m good to play on the links course. I think everything on this golf course is very tough.”
She said she would probably spend her evening watching Thai dramas and eating a Chinese takeaway with her roommate, Wichanee Meechai. There is a Thai restaurant 20 minutes from where she is staying, but she doesn’t have a car.
There are nine players from Thailand in this year’s Ricoh Women’s British Open and seven of those are poised to make the cut.
One of those players is the world number one, Ariya Jutanugarn, another, amateur Atthaya Thitikul, who won the Ladies European Thailand Championship on the LET last year aged 15. Another is Thidapa Suwannapura, who recently won the Marathon Classic presented by Owens Corning O-I on the LPGA Tour. Meanwhile, Kanyalak Preedasuttijit qualified for the Ricoh by winning last month’s Ladies European Thailand Championship.
South Korean golfers have dominated women’s global golf for years, but it’s safe to say that Thai players are moving to the fore.
“I think Moriya and Ariya Jutanugarn, they inspire all the Thai golfers a lot and so we know we can do it and we can win tournaments on tour. So everyone just tries to work harder,” said Pornanong. “A lot of media is interested about golf stuff, and the Thai people are very interested in golf, too.”
Pornanong’s father inspired her to take up the game, as he is ‘crazy’ about golf, but her favourite golfer was Lorena Ochoa, the 2007 Ricoh Women’s British Open champion at St Andrews, who she described as a ‘smart’ and ‘lovely girl.’
This might be Pornanong’s time to win the championship. A consistent performer, she has collected 16 titles since turning professional in 2006, including two on the Ladies European Tour: the 2012 Hero Women’s Indian Open and the 2013 Omega Dubai Ladies Masters.
Her best finish so far in a major is T7th at the 2014 US Women’s Open, but she has received a few tips from compatriot Ariya Jutanugarn, who regained the Rolex Rankings No.1 spot after her victory at last week’s Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open, also played on a links course, at Gullane.
Jutanugarn told Pornanong to plan every shot, every day and execute it well. If she sticks to that game plan, there is every possibility of back-to-back Thai winners this fortnight on the Ladies European Tour.
