With the LPGA off for a third straight week, many of the top golfers in the women’s game are at Riyadh Golf Club in Saudi Arabia for the 2024 Aramco Saudi Ladies International.
Backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the Aramco event has a purse of $5 million, which is the same as the men’s Saudi International.
Patty Tavatanakit, whose last individual win came at the 2021 Chevron Championship, is in good position after two rounds with scores of 68 and 70. She is sitting at 8 under and holds a two-shot lead after 36 holes. She has 10 birdies and just two bogeys so far. Tavatanakit was part of the winning Team Thailand at the 2023 Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown, where each team had four players.
Nicole Broch Estrup and Manon De Roey are tied for second at 6 under. Leona Maguire bounced back from an opening-round 76 with a second-round 64, the best score of the week so far by three shots.
Lexi Thompson is tied for 36th at 1 over. Defending tournament champ Lydia Ko is not in the field.
In addition to this event, the 2024 Ladies European Tour schedule also features the Aramco Team Series, comprised of five events staged across the globe. The LET’s Saudi-backed events remain controversial given the wide-ranging human rights abuses Saudi Arabia has been accused of, especially toward women.