Leona Maguire produces sensational finish to claw her way into contention in Cincinnati

Two shots behind South Africa's Ashleigh Buhai after an opening 67, the Co Cavan star opened with 11 straight pars at TPC River's Bend before following a double bogey at the third, her 12th, with a bogey at the next to find herself outside the top 40 on two-under.

But digging deep as she seeks her first win on the LPGA Tour this year, she birdied the fifth, sixth, eighth and ninth to card a one-under 71.

While she missed eight greens in regulation, Maguire's hot finish catapulted her to a tie for 23rd on six-under at halfway.

But she's six shots behind rising Thai star Jeeno Thitikul, whose 66 gave her a one-shot lead over LPGA Hall of Famer Lydia Ko on 12–under.

Ko shot a 66 in the morning wave before Thitikul matched her in the afternoon.

Like Maguire, she started on the back nine and grabbed her first of seven birdies on the par-five 11th.

She added another at the 13th after making a seven-foot putt and then made back-to-back birdies at the 17th and 18th to turn in 32.

She dropped a shot at the first but birdied the par-five sixth and the eighth before picking up another shot at the ninth.

"It's pretty good," Thitikul said. "I think it's really kind of a low-scoring course, so a lot of players get low on this course.

"The par fives are reachable, can make all the par fives, I guess. That's pretty much the point of this course."

Unlike Thitikul and Maguire, Ko played in the softer morning conditions and made a birdie at the sixth and an eagle three at the eighth before adding further birdies at the 13th, 14th and 18th to be the only player to go bogey-free through 36 holes.

While Thitikul is searching for her second win of the season, 21-time LPGA winner Ko is chasing her third, which doesn't include her gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

After winning the season-opening Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, Ko's win in Paris earned her the final point she needed for induction into the LPGA Hall of Fame.

She capped off the summer with her third major championship victory in the AIG Women's Open in the Old Course at St Andrews and is now in the hunt for another win in Ohio.