Portuguese women's open amateur championship

KYLIE, MICHELE SHARE FIFTH
PLACE AS FLORENTYNA TAKES
OVER LEAD FROM CARLOTA

Scots Kylie Walker (Buchanan Castle) and Michele Thomson (McDonald Ellon) are sharing fifth place at the halfway stage of Portuguese women's open amateur golf championship at Benamor Golf Club on the eastern Algarve.
Kylie, pictured right, improved on her opening-day effort by five shots with a 70 over the par-71 course for a three-over-par tally of 145. She had a roller-coaster round of one eagle, five birdies, two double bogeys and two bogeys.
The last six holes, which she covered in five under par, were Kylie Walker at her best - birdie-par-eagle-birdie-par-birdie.
Earlier in the round, she had a double bogey 5 at the short second, followed by a birdie at the fourth and a bogey at the fifth.
Turning in two-over-par 38, Kylie had another short-hole double bogey 5 at the 10th but bounced back with a birdie at the 11th before shedding one at the 12th. Then came her great finish.
Michele Thomson, for the second day in a row, had a very good score going early on. She birdied the third, fourth and seventh and was still three under par after eight holes. Then the Aberdeenshire champion ran up a triple bogey 7 at the ninth where she went out of bounds through the back of the green.
Coming home, the long-hitting Michele birdied the 11th, 13th and 14th but squandered shots at the 10th, 12th, 16th and 17th for a 72, a one-stroke improvement but another "might-have-been" round.
Hamburg-born Florentyna Parker, daughter of a Germany-based club professional, took over the lead from Spanish teenager Carlota Ciganda, the British open amateur champion and hot favourite for this title.
Florentyna, like Michele Thomson a member of the Ladies Golf Union Elite Squad, had a flawless second round of 67 with birdies at the sixth, 11th, 12th and 17th for a four-under-par tally of 138 - one shot ahead of Ciganda who had a 70 for 139.
Carlota, uncharacteristically, had two bogeys on her scorecard but cancelled them out with three birdies.
Welsh pair Sahra Hassan (140) and Breanne Loucks (143) are in third and fourth positions in a field of 55 players. There will be a cut to the leading 40 players and ties after the third round.


LEADING SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 142 (2 x 71)
138 F Parker (Eng) 71 67.
139 C Ciganda (Spa) 69 70.
140 S Hassan (Wal) 70 70.
143 B Loucks (Wal) 72 71.
145 K Walker (Sco) 75 70, M Thomson (Sco) 73 72, B Genuini (Fra) 71 74.
147 E Gassiot (Fra) 74 73, A Urchegui (Spa) 74 73.
Other scores:
148 H Aitchison (Eng) 71 77 (jt 10th).
150 T Davies (Wal) 76 74 (jt 17th).
152 L Whittaker (Ger) 72 80 (jt 24th).
153 K Rands (Eng) 77 76 (jt 29th).
154 N Kitching (Ire) 79 75, G O'Leary (Ire) 79 75, R W Thomas (Wal) 79 75 (jt 33rd).
156 S James (Eng) 76 80 (jt 38th).
158 A Storey (Eng) 78 80, V Bradshaw (Ire) 77 81 (jt 43rd).
159 N Hunter (Eng) 79 80 (jt 47th).
160 K Delaney (Ire) 82 78 (jt 49th).