United States Extends Lead in Second Round of 2026 Women’s PGA Cup

The United States team kept its foot on the gas in Friday’s second round of the 2026 Women’s PGA Cup. The Americans pushed their overall lead to 22 strokes over Canada (446), shooting a second consecutive 7-under 212 in windy conditions on Carden Park’s Cheshire course to reach 14-under (424) through 36 holes. Great Britain & Ireland is third at 449.

Allie Knight (Knoxville, Tennessee) led the way for the U.S., shooting the low round of the day, a bogey-free 4-under 69. Sandra Changkija (Daytona Beach, Fla.) carded her second straight 2-under 71 while Playing Captain Ashley Grier (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) added a 1-under 72 to round out the U.S. Team’s three counting scores.

Changkija sits atop the individual leaderboard at 4-under with Great Britain & Ireland’s Sian Evans two strokes back at 2-under. Canada’s Diana McDonald is third at 1-under.

“It was great teamwork, a great day working together,” said Grier. “Allie played amazing. I scraped it around, hit some really good shots and made some nice putts to get to one under. Sandra played steady again. That's what's great about this event is you don't have to play great every day. That's why you have teammates, so some of us that didn't play as good yesterday played good today.”

Knight, a PGA Teaching Professional at Fairways and Greens Golf Center, jumped out to a solid start with four straight pars. Knight’s 8-foot birdie putt at the par-4 5th proved to be a turning point.

“I felt like I couldn't get anything to drop and finally had a shorter putt and was just kind of like, you know, ‘It's time to make one.’ That kind of broke the seal. I felt like it was giving me some momentum to get some more to fall throughout the round.”

Knight tallied four additional pars to make the turn at 1-under 36. Her flawless play continued on the back-nine with birdies at the par-4 10th and two in a row on holes 14-15.

“I hit the ball really well,” said Knight. “I didn't make any mistakes and hit it in the right spots and finally had some putts drop. It's just a good solid round of golf.”

Changkija, a PGA Assistant Golf Professional at Sugar Mill Country Club, rebounded from a three-putt bogey at the opening par-3 1st hole with a pair of front-nine birdies at the par-4 5th and par-4 7th holes.

“I just really try to make sure I'm reading the wind correctly, being in position and staying patient when it comes to where the shots end up, just patience and perseverance,” said Changkija.

Changkija added another birdie at the par-4 13th before missing a 6-foot par putt at the par-4 16th for her lone back-nine bogey. She closed on a high note when her patience paid off once again at the par-4 18th. After sinking a 40-foot putt for birdie on 18 in Thursday’s opening round, Changkija escaped a fairway bunker with her second shot before draining a spectacular 40-foot chip-in for birdie on Friday.

Grier, a PGA Assistant Golf Professional at The Legacy Golf & Tennis Club, followed a 1-over 38 on the front with a clean 2-under 34 on the back highlighted by consecutive birdies on holes 10-11.

“I hit it way better than yesterday and putted it well,” explained Grier. “The ball just didn't quite go in the hole, so I felt like I could have pretty easily been 2,3,4-under. Hopefully tomorrow they will all go in.”

The U.S. Team’s quest for a fourth consecutive Women’s PGA Cup victory concludes Saturday at Carden Park with starting times beginning at 8:30 a.m. BST.

“It's so exciting,” said Grier. “It takes a little bit of the pressure off. Everybody on the team is just such a great player, so they just have to keep playing their own game.”

For additional information on the Women’s PGA Cup, visit here.