Martin ties course record with sizzling 63 to share final-round lead at Women’s English Open
Home favourite bounces back in spectacular fashion to join Iceland’s Kristinsdottir at the summit ahead of Friday's finale in Manchester
Korea - England’s Thalia Martin turned moving day into a historic showcase at Manchester Golf Club, firing a sensational nine-under-par 63 to tie the course record and vault into a share of the second-round lead at the Women’s English Open. The 30-year-old primarily competes on the main Ladies European Tour (LET), but she looked completely at home on the LET Access Series (LETAS) layout as she mixed 11 birdies across her first 15 holes to reach 10-under for the tournament. Despite a late stumble with back-to-back bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes, Martin’s explosive display earned her a share of the pole position alongside Iceland’s Ragga Kristinsdottir.
“I was trying to push for double digits, but we’ll still take nine-under,” joked Martin, who uncovered her phenomenal scoreline only after peaking at her scorecard on the 16th tee. The Indonesian-born player, who moved to England at age four and transitionally switched to golf from tennis due to a back injury, attributed her stellar round to a flawless putting performance. “Today just seemed to click. I managed to see the line a little bit better. My approach shots have always been good, but today I found fairways and managed to roll some putts in.”
Kristinsdottir joined Martin at the 10-under summit after navigating her second round with a clinical nine-birdie 65. The Icelandic golfer, who missed out on an automatic LET card by just a single stroke last season, relied heavily on her elite approach play to set up short-range scoring chances all afternoon. Though an unfortunate bogey on the demanding 18th hole denied her the outright overnight lead, the former Vasteras Open winner is confident that a recent competitive reset will pay dividends as she pursues her second developmental tour crown.
Lurking just a single stroke off the pace is Czechia’s Tereza Zapletal Kozeluhova, who battled through immense back-nine tension to card a solid three-under 69. The 25-year-old is highly motivated to erase the heartbreak of previous near-misses and finally claim her maiden professional victory on Friday. Further down the leaderboard, England’s Billie-Jo Smith occupies solo fourth place at eight-under par, while a global trio consisting of Austria’s Isabella Holpfer, Australia’s Hannah Reeves, and the United Arab Emirates’ Hyeonji Kang sit three strokes behind the front-runners in a tie for fifth.
The tournament cut fell at an even-par benchmark, safely advancing 52 players to the final day while spelling an early exit for Order of Merit leaders Lauren Holmey and Natalie Armbruester. With the flagship €80,000 event acting as a vital pathway toward full inclusion on the main European circuit, all eyes turn to Friday’s marquee final pairing of Martin and Kristinsdottir, who will launch their championship bids at 11:20 AM local time.