After opening with a career-best 7-under 65 to sit outright second, Davidson grinded through a 2-over 74 on Friday to reach the halfway mark at 5-under-par, tied for eighth and seven shots behind South Korea’s Ina Yoon.
 
Yoon backed up her opening-round 63 with a 3-under 69 to extend her lead to five shots heading into the weekend.

Davidson will be joined in the final two rounds by fellow Australians Robyn Choi and Grace Kim, who both made the cut at 1-under-par after matching rounds of 72-71.

New Zealand’s Lydia Ko also progressed at 1-over, recovering from an opening 76 with a strong 3-under 69.
 
Lee’s title defence came to an early end after a 3-over 75 left the three-time major champion at 2-over, one shot outside the cut line.
 
Hannah Green and Gabi Ruffels also finished at 2-over to narrowly miss the weekend, while Cassie Porter ended her championship at 5-over.
 
A nervous start saw Davidson double-bogey her opening hole, immediately surrendering ground after Thursday's brilliant round.
 
The Queenslander responded with 10 consecutive pars before birdies at the 12th and 13th erased the early damage and lifted her back to 7-under.
 
Another double bogey at the par-4 16th undid that hard work, but Davidson closed with two pars to remain well placed heading into the weekend.
 
“I felt a little bit under pressure today actually,” Davidson said.
 
“I've never been in contention in a major after the first round, so it was a little bit of a different experience for me.
 
“Yesterday felt really smooth and then starting with a double I was like, ah, crap. Then it just felt like a grind after that.
 
“I hit two bad shots that cost me two double bogeys today but really grinded in the middle and made a couple of birdies.
 
“Still seems like I'm in contention, so I think it was good to get that pressure out of the way today, and then I can hopefully have a couple good rounds on the weekend.”
 
It was a frustrating day for Lee, whose title defence unravelled with a 3-over 75 to finish at 2-over, one shot shy of the cut line.
 
Bogeys at the second, fifth and seventh put her on the back foot, while birdies at the eighth and 12th briefly revived her hopes.
 
Late dropped shots at the 16th and 18th ultimately sealed her fate.
 
Green was unable to replicate her 2019 Hazeltine triumph, missing the weekend at the course where she claimed her maiden major title.
 
An early bogey and double bogey proved costly, with only one birdie offering little relief as she also finished at 2-over.
 
Davidson will play alongside world No.1 Nelly Korda in the third round, with Korda tied sixth at 6-under and chasing three straight major titles after winning the Chevron Championship and U.S. Women’s Open this year.

Round 2 Australasian scores
T8        Karis Davidson           (65-74)
T30      Grace Kim                   (72-71)
T30      Robyn Choi                 (72-71)
T55      Lydia Ko (NZ)             (76-69)
MC      Gabi Ruffels                (73-73)
MC      Hannah Green            (72-74)
MC      Minjee Lee                  (71-75)
MC      Cassie Porter              (74-77)
 
Round 3 tee times AEST
11:44pm          Robyn Choi
11:55pm*        Grace Kim
1:23am            Karis Davidson
1:34am*          Lydia Ko (NZ)