Moving up the leaderboard during a tough second round at the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout did not take much. Any under par round that was turned in resulted in a significant jump, with a 3-under 69 coming in as the low score of the day, being turned in by three players. The hot conditions firmed up Mystic Creek Golf Club, giving an extra bite to an already challenging course. First-round leader Jenny Bae posted another under-par round on day two, however, turning in a 2-under 70 to hold the lead by 3 shots over Hailee Cooper.

Bae started her day similar to round one, playing the first six holes in 2-under before her first bogey of the week occurred on No. 8. The Epson Tour sophomore remained calm, finishing the front nine with a par on No. 9, making the turn with a 1-under 35.

Back-to-back birdies followed to start the back nine, rolling in putts on the tricky 10th hole and short par 4 11th. The back nine appeared boring looking at her scorecard with Bae only making pars for a few holes after her back-to-back birdies, but round two was not as stress-free as round one. Bae scrambled to make her pars on the back nine but eventually gave a shot back on No. 17. One more par on No. 18 was good enough for the University of Georgia grad to head into the final round with a 3-shot lead as she tries to hoist her third Epson Tour trophy in two years.

"Yesterday I've honestly never played such fun and stress-free golf in a while, and it was really enjoyable. I think today I think I gave myself a little too much pressure, and from the start and, I was a little tense," explained Bae. "Despite everything, I think today went fairly well and I put myself in a good position to heading into tomorrow."

Cooper remains in second place after an even par second round. The day started off rocky for the rookie, who was 2-over after her opening nine holes. Cooper battled back on her closing nine holes, making a birdie on No. 11. She remained bogey-free on the back, hitting the par 5 18th in two shots, setting up a 15-foot eagle putt. The putt missed on the low side but set up a tap-in birdie for a scrappy even par round. Cooper heads into the final round in the final grouping for the first time in her career as she tries to track down Bae.

"Today when I started out, I hit the first green and then after that I missed 4 or 5 in a row. Just kind of a struggle on the front to kind of get the groove back," said Cooper. "Once I did, I was able to make some stuff happen. I just need to put it all together tomorrow and have a really good round to kind of try to make something happen."

The final round of the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout will begin at 7:30 a.m. local time, with players going off holes 1 and 10 until 9:20 a.m. local time. A trophy ceremony will take place on the 18th green following the conclusion of play.

ABOUT THE LEADER

Jenny Bae signed for a 2-under second round and holds the lead at 8-under total

Bae has recorded 10 birdies and only two bogeys through 36-holes
Her 6-under 66 was her second lowest opening round of the season
Bae is a two-time champion on the Epson Tour
- She won back-to-back events during her rookie season in 2023
She has five top 10 finishes this year
- Her best placing was fourth at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic
- She has made 14 of 16 cuts this season
The 23-year-old won the 2023 Inkster Award presented by Workday while attending the University of Georgia

THINGS TO KNOW

Hailee Cooper carded an even par second round and is currently second at the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout

Cooper fired a bogey-free 5-under 67 in round one, followed by an even par second round that included 2 birdies and 2 bogeys
She is an Epson Tour rookie
Cooper has made 10 starts on the Epson Tour this season, making the cut in 9 of them
- She has two top-10 finishes so far this year
Is a two-time winner on the ANNIKA Women’s All Pro Tour

Julia Johnson turned in a 3-under 69 in the afternoon wave in round two

Johnson made five birdies and two bogeys during her second round
The 25-year-old is an Epson Tour rookie
She now made 10 of 15 cuts this season
- Her best result came at the Casino Del Sol Golf Classic where she finished T11
Johnson earned multiple All-American honors while attending the University of Mississippi

QUICK QUOTES

Lauren Stephenson (-3, 4th) on her 2-under second round:

“It feels really good. This course is so hard. It's mentally just exhausting out there in this heat. I started off today with two bogeys. A little shaky to start, but I just kept myself in it knowing that it's a tough course and if you hang in there, you kind of can work your way to the top.”

Amelia Garvey (-1, T8) on her 5-under back nine and overall game:

“I kind of knew I had to go and put up a solid number today. I was really trying to gain some spots on the field, so I went out and played a little bit more aggressively than yesterday. A few things just went my way and was able to eagle the last hole on that side, which nearly went in for an albatross. So yeah, it was just a good solid day.”

Bae Maintains the Lead at the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout After Round Two

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