Round two delivered plenty of excitement at the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic the fifth event of the 2026 Epson Tour season, held at the challenging TPC Scottsdale – Champions Course in Scottsdale, Arizona. The 132-player field was cut to the top 60 and ties, setting the stage for a thrilling weekend as players are in prep mode heading into moving day.

Sitting atop the leaderboard is Lauren Olivares sitting at -7 after 36 holes. The Epson Tour rookie opened her round with a birdie on the par-5 No. 1. Olivares gave her shot right back with a bogey on the second hole, but wasted no time firing on all cylinders dropping four more birdies to round out her opening nine.

“Just hitting my drives were pretty consistent off the tee. My putting was working really good. My speed was really good today, said Olivares. “I just had tap-ins. So I didn't have to struggle a lot to make those pars. Par fives, made three birdies on the par-5's. Struggled a little bit of the par threes, but nothing crazy. I was just having fun. Honestly, it was hotter yesterday than today, so it was nice.”

Olivares has played very well in her rookie season, posting two top-10s out of four starts. The Mexico native is currently No. 11 in the Race for the Card leaderboard.

“I think really doing my homework before coming out here, looking at the plans, really committing to my strategy for the tournament, for the golf course, making sure I get the right speed of the greens, really get a touch from the rough, from the bunkers. But I feel just being committed to a good strategy.”

Four athletes sit one shot behind Olivares, including fellow rookies Lauryn Nguyen and Kaleiya Romero. Nguyen the Washington native signed for a picture-perfect scorecard this afternoon draining six birdies. The Northwestern University alumna is coming off a T10 finish at the IOA Championship presented by Morongo Resort Casino and Spa. Make sure to check out if Nguyen can take over the lead on moving day after jumping from T38 to T2 on the leaderboard.

“I think my patience and adaptability, like I said earlier, I think there's a lot of different places to be. So just kind of putting that into your head that each shot is independent of each other. So, just being able to adapt and hit a good shot each time,” said Nguyen.

Romero had a steady day on the links making three birdies and two bogeys, ultimately signing for a 1-under par, 70, slightly sliding on the leaderboard from solo lead to trail by one shot heading into Saturday afternoon.

Epson Tour sophomore Rachel Kuehn surged from T10 to T2 the top of the leaderboard with a solid under-par performance in the afternoon wave. The North Carolina native carded a sharp 4-under-par 67, vaulting her into a four-way tie for second place with Nguyen, Romero, and Plata.

Kuehn built momentum early, draining five birdies on the front nine to make the turn in 4-under 32. Her round began to crumble posting three consecutive bogeys on holes nine through 11, but battled to the finish line dropping two more birdies for an even par back nine.

Valery Plata got a shaky start to round two, bogeying her first two holes. The Columbia native reeled it back in an found her momentum with birdies on holes six and eight. Plata finished the day at 2-under and sits in a tie for second with three other athletes.

The leaderboard remains packed, with several players at 4-under tied in the top 10, promising a dramatic Saturday moving day for the title, $400,000 purse, and crucial Race to the Card points toward LPGA dreams.

Round three begins at 7:00 a.m. local time with a single tee format. Follow along with live scoring here.

Lauren Olivares Takes One Shot Lead Heading into Moving Day of the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Golf Classic

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