Carolina blue skies and lower humidity greeted the 96 competitors for Round 2 of the 2nd U.S. Adaptive Open Championship at Pinehurst Resort’s Course No. 6, setting the stage for players to jockey for position heading into Wednesday’s final round. First-round leader Conor Stone of Ireland had another under-par score in the works before stumbling to a bogey-double bogey finish, allowing 25-year-old Kipp Popert of England to claim the 36-hole advantage after he fired a 3-under-par 69. Popert, who has cerebral palsy, stands at 5-under 139 for the championship, one stroke clear of Stone and two strokes ahead of defending men’s champion Simon Lee.
On the women’s side, first-round leader Ryanne Jackson, 25, of Seminole, Fla., improved by one stroke on Tuesday and completed a 3-over-par 75. Her 36-hole total of 7-over 151 is three strokes clear of defending women’s champion Kim Moore, of Battle Creek, Mich., who shot the best round of the day among women with a 1-over 73.