Women's British Open 2015: Friday Leaderboard Scores and LPGA Highlights

Hyo Joo Kim could not maintain her excellent first round at the 2015 Women's British Open on Friday, slipping from the top of the leaderboard after hitting a highly disappointing six-over 78, as difficult conditions affected the quality of the play at Turnberry.

Suzann Pettersen carded a three-under 69 to leave her on seven under overall and on top of the leaderboard. Three players are tied for second place on five under.

Here is the leaderboard after Round 2:

Pos.	Player	To Par	Round 2
1	Suzann Pettersen	-7	69
T2	So Yeon Ryu	-5	72
T2	Lydia Ko	-5	73
T2	Teresa Lu	-5	71
T5	Mika Miyazato	-4	72
T5	Jin Young Ko	-4	Par
T7	Anna Nordqvist	-3	72
T7	Minjee Lee	-3	72
9	Inbee Park	-2	73

Kim struggled throughout Friday, inconsistent on the front nine and disastrous on the back.

Birdies on the third and seventh were both canceled out with bogeys two holes later on the fifth and ninth. A third birdie at the 10th left Kim just one under for the day so far, but thanks to the weather she was still holding the lead:

However, five bogeys in the back nine and a double bogey at the 13th saw the Korean slide rapidly down the leaderboard.

By contrast, Pettersen handled the difficult conditions with aplomb. The Norwegian hit three birdies on the front nine at the second, third and seventh, with a bogey at the sixth providing the only negative in a strong start to the day.

A fourth birdie at the 17th concluded the scoring for Pettersen at three under for the day.

The Women's British Open's official Twitter feed shared the progression of her round:

So Yeon Ryu endured a mixed round, hitting four birdies and four bogeys to remain on five under overall.

Lydia Ko salvaged what could have been a devastating round with two consecutive birdies at the 14th and 15th.

After her front nine left her on par for the round, three bogeys in the first four on the back nine threatened to completely derail her tournament, but the 18-year-old showed exactly why she is a high-ranked player in the world and finished only one over for the day.

Golf Digest's Ron Sirak noted the weather was a huge factor in determining her score, which the player herself confirmed:

Teresa Lu hit one under on Friday, an impressive feat given the conditions.

Lu picked up two shots in consecutive holes on the second and third, as well as two more in her back nine. Three bogeys pegged the 27-year-old back, but her respectable round ensures she remains in contention heading into the weekend.

If the conditions continue to affect the players over the final two rounds, then whoever can best manage them will likely come out on top. Based on Friday's evidence, Pettersen appears the most able to do so. Expect her to lead by example on Saturday.

Should the winds cease, it will likely be a much more open contest, though Ko will undoubtedly be the most likely to triumph. The youngster continues to go from strength to strength and can send out a strong message with a first major win this weekend.