KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – So Yeon Ryu of South Korea shot a 6-under 65 on Friday to take a two-stroke lead halfway through the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia, the second event of the tour’s six-tournament Asian swing.

Ryu, the reigning Canadian Pacific Women’s Open champion, had seven birdies and a bogey to move to an 11-under total of 131, leading a group of four players including Japan’s Akayo Uehara, whose second-round 63 contained eight birdies.

Also at 9 under were Lydia Ko of New Zealand and Jodi Ewart Shadoff of England, who both carded 64s in the second round, and Eun Hee Ji, who shot 67.

Top-ranked Stacy Lewis, who shot 65 to take the first-round lead, slipped to a share of 11th place with a 71.

South Korean golfers have won six of the past seven LPGA tournaments.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Top-ranked Stacy Lewis shot a 6-under 65 on Thursday to take a one-stroke lead at the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia, the second event of the tour’s six-tournament Asian swing.

Lewis birdied the par-5 16th hole to break away from a tight leaderboard at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club. Tied for second were the South Korean quartet of Na Yeon Choi, Hee Young Park, Eun Hee Ji and So Yeon Ryu.

Golfers from South Korea have won six of the last seven LPGA tournaments.

Amy Yang of South Korea and China’s Shanshan Feng were among a group tied for sixth after shooting 67.

Natalie Gulbis shot 69, Karrie Webb carded 70, and Lexi Thompson – who won by four strokes here last year – had a 71. Paula Creamer shot 75.

“My goal was to shoot a 1 or 2 under on the front and I got off to a good start,” Lewis said. “It was kind of shaky on the first three holes but I just hung in there and gave myself a lot of birdie chances and I was fortunate to make a few. So it was a little bit of an ugly round, but I got a lot out of it.”

Choi, who teed off from the 10th, said she was pleased to be only one stroke behind after nearly putting her ball in the water on her approach on the par-4 second hole, her 11th of the day.

“I had one bogey out there, but I was lucky the ball did not roll into the water,” Choi said. “I hope to come back with a good feeling tomorrow.”

Feng finished tied for 49th in her native China last week, and was happy to be playing away from home this week.

“I’m more relaxed,” Feng said. “Last week, I think people wanted me to win again, and I told everybody I was not going to give myself pressure, but I think I still did a little bit. I tried too hard and actually it went the wrong way.”

Last week, South Korea’s Mirim Lee won the Reignwood Classic in Beijing for her second victory of the year. The LPGA KEB-HanaBank is next week in South Korea, followed by the Blue Bay LPGA in China.

BEIJING – South Korea’s Mirim Lee won the second title of her rookie LPGA Tour season, shooting a 5-under 69 in the final round on Sunday to capture the Reignwood Classic by two strokes.

Starting the day tied for third, Lee birdied three holes on the front nine and added two more on No. 16 and 18 to offset one bogey. She finished at 15-under 277.

Lee’s first LPGA victory came just two months ago at the Meijer LPGA Classic, where she beat her third-ranked countrywoman Inbee Park in a playoff.

“I really didn’t think I would get my second win this quickly,” Lee said. “I was a lot more nervous this time than first time around.”

Top-ranked Stacy Lewis and Caroline Hedwall, the co-overnight leaders, both fell short on a windy final day at Pine Valley Golf Club.

Hedwall, who was aiming for her first LPGA title, shot a 73 to finish second at 13 under.

“It was tougher out there today,” the Swede said. “I think most girls out there were struggling a little bit with the wind, because it’s a tough golf course in the wind.”

Lewis, meanwhile, started off her round with a birdie, but bogeyed No. 7 and added three more bogeys on the back nine to slip out of contention. She shot a 75 for equal sixth at 11 under.

Lee said she learned a lot playing in the final group with Lewis, who was aiming for her fourth title of the year.

“Usually when I play my rounds I don’t watch the other players,” she said. “Today I really observed how Stacy played, and she was such a phenomenal player. It shows why she is the No. 1 player in the world.”

In 17 events this year, Lee has made the cut 13 times and has four top-10 finishes. With the win, she will move up 11 spots in the world rankings to No. 18.

Park shot a 71 to finish in a share of third with fellow South Korean Haeji Kang (69) and American Brittany Lang (72) at 12 under.

BEIJING – Stacy Lewis recovered from a slow start with four birdies on the back nine Saturday to take a share of the lead with Sweden’s Caroline Hedwall heading into the final round of the LPGA Reignwood Classic.

The top-ranked Lewis started the day with a two-stroke lead over fellow American Brittany Lang, but fell back with three bogeys through the 11th hole. She then made three straight birdies from No. 13 before closing with a birdie on the 18th to regain a share of the lead with a 72.

“I made some bad swings early,” Lewis said. “Probably the swing I made on 13, on the par 3, I don’t know what it was, but things just kind of seemed to click after that. You know, just kind of found some confidence in my golf swing from there, and then making the putts too, which was nice.”

Hedwall made five birdies on the back nine to shoot a 5-under 68. She will be aiming for her first career LPGA title on Sunday, while Lewis will be trying to win her fourth this year.

“I put myself in the position a few times but just haven’t won yet,” the Swede said. “When I go out there tomorrow I’m trying to just be patient and be relaxed about it though, because you can’t force anything when you’re playing golf.”

Hedwall and Lewis were at 13-under 206 at Pine Valley Golf Club.

Lewis said another title would also help put distance over her closest rivals in the race for LPGA player of the year.

“A win this week would help that a lot,” she said. “I don’t think I’m comfortable until the last tournament and nobody else can beat me. It’s one of those things I don’t think you get too comfortable with. The players behind me are great players and can win two tournaments in a row pretty easily.”

Second-ranked Inbee Park of South Korea stayed in contention Sunday with a 68. She’s tied for fifth with Germany’s Caroline Masson (71) at 10-under 209.

“I had really nothing to lose really today,” Park said. “I was in the middle about 12th or 15th place. I had to make some kind of move today to have a chance tomorrow.”

Lang shot a 72 to sit in third with South Korea’s Mirim Lee (70) at 11 under.

VENICE, Fla. – Ginger Howard of Bradenton, Fla. shot a 1-under 71 Friday to earn medalist honors at the LPGA Qualifying Tournament Stage II at Plantation Golf and Country Club.  Howard finished with a four-day total of 9-under 289, one stroke clear of Alison Lee of Valencia, Calif.

The cut was made at 7-over 295 and 85 will advance to Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying Tournament.

Howard won medalist honors in 2011 at LPGA Qualifying Tournament Stage II and will be heading to her fourth final stage. She is the first player to medal twice.

“It is really neat to medal again,” said 20-year-old Howard. “It is a different feeling this time around. The first time I felt like I was going to get something and that it was over and that I accomplished something, but now I realize that I have not really accomplished anything yet and I am just going to stay humble this time around.”

“Last time, I was like ‘let’s go celebrate’ but this time I am going to stay poised.”

Leading the Canadians was Kelowna, B.C.’s Samantha Richdale, who finished at 5-under 283.

Team Canada’s Augusta James carded a final round 69 to tie for 10th at 3-under 285.

Mississauga, Ont.’s Brogan McKinnon led thru 36 holes and finished tied for 51st at 3-over 291.

Amateur SooBin Kim of Coquitlam, B.C. climbed into the top 80 thanks to a final round 69. She finished the event at 6-over 294.

Brittany Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. rounded out the Canadians advancing to the final stage of LPGA Tour Q-School. She tied for 78th at 7-over 295.

Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying Tournament will be held December 3-7 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.  The top 20 at final stage will earn category 12 status on the LPGA Tour priority list, while 21-45 will earn category 17 status on the priority list.

Players that finished 72 holes at Stage II, but did not advance to Stage III will have category “I” status on the Symetra Tour priority list.

Players that complete a minimum of 72 holes at Stage III and do not receive 2015 LPGA membership in category 12 will receive category “D” status on the Symetra Tour priority list.

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BEIJING – Top-ranked Stacy Lewis birdied the final hole Friday for a 5-under 68 and a two-stroke lead over fellow Texan Brittany Lang after the second round of the Reignwood LPGA Classic.

“It was a day that I just had to stay patient,” Lewis said. “Even coming in, I could have made a few more birdies. Didn’t quite hit the shots around the greens that I needed to.”

Lewis had a 12-under 134 at Reignwood Pine Valley.

She holed some timely putts.

“Putts that kept the round going,” Lewis said. “That’s the thing. I’ve made them at the right time. I’ve had good speed all week.”

Lewis leads the tour with three victories and earnings of $2,214,143. Last year, she finished a stroke behind Shanshan Feng after the Chinese player eagled the par-5 18th.

Lang had a 66 to match the best round off the week – and set up a Saturday pairing with Lewis.

“We’re really good friends though and I have a lot of respect for her on the golf course.” Lang said about Lewis. “Yeah, definitely going to be out of my element, a little intimidated. She’s a great player. But at the same time, I’m trying to get better, too. So playing with her, watching her, and trying to play well and do my thing is going to make me better. If I could play with her on more weekends, then I’ll be doing pretty good. Maybe I can learn something from watching her.”

Germany’s Caroline Masson, South Korea’s Mirim Lee, Spain’s Belen Mozo and Sweden’s Caroline Hedwall were tied for third at 8 under. Masson and Lee shot 68, Mozo had a 69, and Hedwall a 71.

Fourth-ranked Suzann Pettersen followed her opening 74 with a 66 to reach 6 under.

“I played some good golf yesterday. I had six birdies or something and shot 1 over, which is kind of a disaster,” Pettersen said. “Then I made a mess out of two of the par 5s.

“I don’t know if I was a little bit rusty and not sharp enough from not having played for quite a few weeks and it kind of got to me a little bit on certain holes. … Happy to bounce back with 7 under and put myself somewhere back in the tournament.”

Feng was tied for 39th at even par after a 71.

BEIJING – Top-ranked Stacy Lewis birdied five holes on the back nine to shoot a 7-under 66 in the first round of the Reignwood LPGA Classic on Thursday.

The American had seven birdies in her bogey-free round and was one stroke ahead of Caroline Hedwall of Sweden.

Lewis is back in Beijing to try to win the tournament she narrowly lost a year before. She led for most of the final round by one stroke before Chinese golfer Shanshan Feng eagled the par-5 18th hole to win. Lewis finished second.

South Korean players Sun Young Yoo and Jenny Shin were tied for third place at 68 after Thursday’s first round.

Former No. 1 Yani Tseng of Taiwan found some of her old form to shoot a 4-under 69. The five-time major winner has only had two top-10 finishes this year, causing her ranking to slip to No. 66.

Tseng was in a group of six golfers that also included four-time major winner Inbee Park of South Korea.

Feng, the defending champion, had three bogeys on the front nine to finish in a share of 52nd place at 2-over 75.

VENICE, Fla. – Brogan McKinnon of Mississauga, Ont. held firm and maintained her lead at the second stage of the LPGA Tour’s Q-School, shooting a second-round 1-under 71 to move to 7-under 137 (66-71) thru 36 holes.

McKinnon, a former member of Team Canada, holds a two-stroke advantage over Minjee Lee  of Australia, Ginger Howard of Bradenton, Fla. and Celine Herbin of Spain. Carly Werwie Kenosha, Wisc. is fifth at 4-under 140.

“It was a good day,” said 19-year-old McKinnon. “Just like yesterday, all parts of my game were working well. I made three birdies on the front nine after a bogey and my putting was great again.  I feel like my game is in pretty good shape.”

With the 36-hole lead in hand, McKinnon will now aim for medalist honors.

“It would be nice to get my first professional win at qualifying tournament, but top 80 is every players goal and if I need to play it safe I will, but I will try and win now.”

McKinnon played in seven Symetra Tour events and one LPGA Tour event in 2014. She did not advance to Stage III of Qualifying Tournament in 2013.

The top 80 players plus ties advance to Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying Tournament, which takes place at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla. December 3-7.  Final stage is a five-round event with a cut after round four.

Other Canadians currently sitting within the top-80 midway through Stage II include Kelowna, B.C.’s Samantha Richdale (74-69–143, T15); Brittany Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. (73-72–145, T34); Augusta James of Bath, Ont. (74-71–145, T34); Natalie Gleadall of Stratford, Ont. (72-73–145, T34); Jessica Wallace of Langley, B.C. (76-70–146, T52); and Nicole Zhang of Calgary (71-75–146, T52).

PRATTVILLE, Ala. – Mi Jung Hur was finally able to relax for a couple of holes after matching top-ranked Stacy Lewis stroke for stroke Sunday in the final round of the Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic.

The 24-year-old South Korean player never gave up the last-day lead on her way to a tournament-record 21-under 267 total. Hur birdied four of the final eight holes to beat Lewis by four strokes for her second LPGA Tour victory. The each shot 6-under 66.

Hur was able to savor the end of her round, at least. She made a 36-foot birdie putt on No. 11 and set up much easier birdies after that, including one on No. 16.

“After I made that, I definitely think about winning,” she said. “The last two holes, I really enjoyed the golf.”

She allowed herself to go from relief to tears of joy before her second shot on the final hole as she wrapped up her first victory since 2009. Her father, Kwan Moo, served as her caddie and was able to share the moment as she bowed her head crying for several seconds when the win was official.

“It’s definitely an exciting week for me,” Hur said. “I started with two birdies and it made me so much more comfortable the rest of the round. But Stacy played so well and I definitely thought about her.

“I just played my own game, and after nine holes I made a few birdies on the back nine.”

Hur opened with rounds of 64, 70 and 67 on Capitol Hill’s links-style Senator layout. She broke the tournament mark of 19 under set by Katherine Hull-Kirk in 2010. It was the best 72-hole score of Hur’s career.

She saw on the leaderboard that Lewis had climbed to 16 under with a birdie on No. 10. Hur kept up her own string of birdies with four in six holes starting on No. 11.

“It made me a little nervous, but I just focused on my ball and played my own game,” she said.

Lewis won in 2012 at the tournament that was dropped from the schedule last year after losing its title sponsor. She also closed with a 66.

Rookie Paula Reto was third at 14 under after a 73. She shared the third-round lead with Hur at 15 under.

Kris Tamulis was fourth at 13 under after a 70.

Hur gained two strokes on Reto with a long birdie putt on the first hole while the former Purdue player from South Africa two-putted for bogey. Hur birdied the second hole as well while Reto had a bogey on No. 3.

Reto worked her way back to 16 under before back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 11 and 12 put her four strokes back again.

Lewis, a three-time winner this year, opened with four birdies in a six-hole stretch starting on No. 3. She finished her bogey-free round with five straight pars, not enough to close the gap on Hur.

Lewis said it was one of her best days striking the ball “in a long time.” She said the 18th hole was the only time on the back nine where she didn’t have a potential birdie putt of 15 feet or less.

“You get events where people kind of run away with tournaments,” Lewis said. “I’ve done it before. It’s just golf. I played well, gave myself a ton of opportunities for birdies, which that was the goal coming into the day.

“I would have liked to have made a couple of more to give her something to think about coming up those last few.”

Canada’s Alena Sharp climbed 20 spots up the leaderboard Sunday after a final round 6-under par 66. The Hamilton, Ont. native tied for 30th at 5-under 283.

Sue Kim of Langley, B.C. tied for 63rd at 3-over 291.

PRATTVILLE, Ala. – South Korea’s Mi Jung Hur birdied four of the last eight holes Saturday for a 5-under 67 and a share of the lead with Paula Reto in the Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic.

“Beginning of the round my putting wasn’t that good,” Hur said. “But after turned the nine holes, my putting gets better and better, so I had a low score.”

Reto, the second-round leader, birdied three of the final five holes for a 70 to match Hur at 15-under 201 on Capitol Hill’s links-style Senator layout.

“I didn’t start too well,” said Reto, a former Purdue player from South Africa. “I had a couple bogeys and a double there, but I kept patient and just focused on one shot at a time and it kind of helped me out toward the end of the round.”

Hur won her lone LPGA Tour title in 2009, and Reto is winless in her rookie season.

Top-ranked Stacy Lewis and Kris Tamulis were tied for third at 11 under. Lewis, the 2012 winner in the event dropped from the schedule last year after losing its title sponsor, had a 70.

“For the way I played, the score ended up pretty good,” said Lewis, the tour leader with three victories this year. “I didn’t play well. It was kind of a struggle all day and just had to work pretty hard to shoot what I did. But I’m still within striking distance, still have a chance for tomorrow, which that was the goal going into the week.”

Tamulis shot 65, the best round of the day.

“I wasn’t really trying to chase anybody,” Tamulis said. “Didn’t have a great middle of my round yesterday, so I was just going out there. I had some really good numbers today and was able to just kind of go for it.”

Reto rebounded from her double bogey on the par-3 seventh with birdies on the next two holes.

“I wasn’t kind of where I wanted to be with my mental and stuff,” said Reto, who started playing golf at 16 in 2005 when she moved to Florida with her family “So, I just took a couple seconds to myself just to rethink everything, just kind of stayed in there.”

They will play in the same group again Sunday.

“I’m just going to focus on each shot and I will do my best for tomorrow,” Hur said. “Play with Paula will be fun, not much pressure. I mean, she made me so comfortable.”

Reto is in position to win after missing 11 cuts in 18 starts this year.

“It would be really cool. That would put the cherry on the cake,” said Reto, coming off a ninth-place tie in Portland, Oregon. “But I’m not going to think about it. I’m just going to have fun and stuff.”

On the Canadian front, the lone Canadians to make the 36 hole have a share of 50th spot after 54 holes. Hamilton, Ont.’s Alena Sharp and Langley, B.C.’s Sue Kim sit at 1-over 217.