By Mark Hayes

They’re too smart and polite to say it, but Cholcheva Wongras and Min A Yoon are set for a head-to-head shootout for the World Sand Greens Championship.

Only seven players broke par on a blustery second day at Binalong, and given the international raiders were already clear after round one, they’ve essentially turned tomorrow’s final round into a match play scenario for the world title.

Thailand’s Wongras and Korea’s Yoon each had their share of good and bad fortune in firing second-round 68s to leave the former two clear at nine under par.

Six shots further back at one under is West Australian youngster Abbie Teasdale, who courageously fought back from a mid-round wobble to play her final four holes three under to book a berth in the final group.

With bad weather forecast for Saturday, that group will be off earlier than expected with an 8 am shotgun start currently planned by Golf NSW and WPGA Tour of Australasia officials.

Wongras, remarkably composed for someone who turned 18 just last week, was unfazed when a series of short birdie putts went inexplicably awry.

And as if to prove her equilibrium that most can only aspire to on sand greens, she took full toll of a great break on the tough 13th hole when her hooked drive ricocheted back to the fairway before she hoisted a mammoth approach shot to set up a 4m birdie putt to right the ship.

“These things happen in sand greens golf – you can’t control much, and you just have to let things go and remember that what has happened has happened,” she said, falling back on her experience as runner-up at last year’s inaugural world championship at Walcha.

Wongras, who fired a course-record 63 in the opening round, said she was happy to have backed up with another score in red figures but wouldn’t fall into the trap of match-play tactics for the final round.

“No. I’ll just go out and have fun. It’s different from other golf we’ve been playing, so it’s hard to think about that anyway,” she said.

“But (regardless), I’m not that competitive (head-to-head), I just go out and have fun and see what happens.”

Yoon, a prolific visitor to Australia despite being just 22, composed herself after a couple of uncharacteristic errors early in her back nine today.

She closed with birdies on the 16th and 17th to tighten up the race again, but also wouldn’t be drawn into the prospect of a shootout with Wongras.

“I always think about my own game only. Even if it was two, three or even four players, I just play my own game. That’s all I do,” said Yoon, the winner of Webex Players Series Victoria in 2023.

“Australia is ‘happy place’. I (enjoy) being here and it gives me good vibes, good fortune.”