Chandni Canan BauerJulia Lopez Ramirez has made more birdies than anyone in the field. Pauline Roussin-Bouchard has gone 36 holes without a single bogey. And yet neither leads the Maybank Championship.
That distinction belongs to defending champion Miyu Yamashita, who reached 13 under par with a bogey-free second round and heads into the weekend two strokes clear of the pair at 11 under.
It is an awkward position for the rest of the field, particularly given what happened here a year ago. Yamashita was only tied fourth at the halfway stage in 2025 before going on to win a playoff against Hannah Green and Hye-Jin Choi, having finished regulation play at 18 under. This time, she is five strokes better off after 36 holes.
Yamashita Is Making Very Little Work for Herself
The world No. 4 found 12 of 14 fairways and 17 of 18 greens in regulation during her second round, needing 29 putts. On that evidence, the bogey-free card was built on control rather than a series of desperate escapes.
Her recent results suggest this is no isolated good day. Yamashita has finished in the top 10 in four consecutive tournaments and has 12 top-10 finishes from 20 LPGA Tour starts in 2026. Already a winner at the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give and the CPKC Women’s Open this season, she is chasing a third title of the year.
“So it’s not different from usual, but I’ve been playing some really good rounds this year especially. My game is in better shape than last year, so my swing feels really good, too.”
It is a fairly understated assessment from a player who has already won four times on the LPGA Tour, including the 2025 AIG Women’s Open. There is no need for her to talk the performance up. The scorecard is doing that job.
Birdies Versus Damage Limitation
The two players nearest Yamashita have reached the same score in contrasting fashion.
Lopez Ramirez made eight birdies in her second round, taking her tournament tally to a field-leading 15. There was a double bogey along the way, but she has plainly found plenty of chances to attack.
It is a considerable improvement on her Maybank Championship debut in 2025, when she finished 75th. She also arrives with a tied-11th finish at the BMW Ladies Championship in her previous start and the experience of representing the winning European Solheim Cup side in 2026. She has described that occasion as a boost to her confidence and her willingness to play more freely.
Roussin-Bouchard, meanwhile, has taken the cleaner route. She followed one bogey-free round with another and remains the only player in the field yet to record a bogey or worse. She also converted all three sand-save opportunities in round two.
Her 36-hole score is the lowest of her LPGA Tour career, improving on her previous best of 135 at the 2023 Walmart Northwest Arkansas Championship. The contrast with last year’s event is stark: she shot 80 in the second round in 2025, before recovering with a closing 66 to finish tied 60th.
There Is Still Traffic Behind Them
A Lim Kim is alone in fourth at 10 under, only one stroke behind the joint runners-up. Carlota Ciganda produced a nine-under-par second round to move into a tie for ninth at eight under — five strokes off the lead, but hardly out of the conversation.
Elsewhere, Brooke Matthews supplied the day’s most emphatic single shot, holing out with a nine-iron from 130 yards for an ace.
Liyana Durisic is the leading Malaysian player in the field after earning her place through the ASEAN Qualifier. She is also due to compete in the second stage of LPGA Q-Series in Florida next week.
For Yamashita, the task is familiar. Twelve months ago she had to come from behind to claim this title. This weekend, everyone else will have to find a way past her.
