Pinehurst's A.J. Beechler finds himself two shots clear of the field in the Boys 11 division at the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship after a sizzling 69 at Talamore Thursday.

Beechler leads Harrison Corbin, of Inman, S.C., Galven Green, of Malaysia, Kritchayapol Sinchai, of Thailand, and Kyle Cox, of Carrollton, Texas — who each posted solid 71s in Thursday's opening round — heading into Round Two Friday. Another Pinehurst player, Benjamin Crow, is tied for 72nd with eight other players after firing an 80.

Pinehurst's Garrett Kane is within striking distance in the Boys' 6 & Under division after shooting a 39 on nine holes at Midland Country Club. Connor Ritter, of East Sparta, Ohio, leads that division by a stroke after posting a 33.

In the Girls 7 & Under division, Sophia Louis, of Boca Raton, Fla. shot a 35 at Midland and leads Sky Sudberry, of Spring, Texas, by a stroke.

In the Boys 7 division, played on the front nine at Mid Pines, Jeevan Sihota, of Canada, leads Jed Dy, of the Philippines, by a shot after scoring a 35.

Another Boca Raton player, Elle Nachmann, finds herself in the lead in the Girls 8 division after a 37 on the front nine at Longleaf. She's up a stroke on five other players.

In the Boys 8 division on the back nine at Mid Pines, it's Benjamin James, of Waterbury, Conn. out front by three strokes after a 33. Colin Dutton, of Foxfire, is in an eight-way tie for 51st after posting a 45. Conlan Kane is two strokes behind (47) in a tie for 68th.

In the Girls 9 division, played on the back nine at Longleaf, Karah Sanford, of Escondido, Calif. went low with a 31 and is four shots in front of the field. Three players are tied for second with 35s.

Three players are knotted up at the top of the Boys 9 division, an 18 hole contest at Pinehurst No. 8. David Hu, of Canada, Michael Thorbjornsen, of Wellesley, Mass., and Nicholas Gabrelcik, of Trinity, Fla., each shot 71 and lead the field by two strokes. Symon Balbin, of Pinehurst, shot an 81 and is tied for 48th.

Anina Ku, of Basking Ridge, N.J., had the round of the day — a phenomenal 63 in the Girls 10 division played at Longleaf. She's five shots in front of second-place Grace Chen, of Sunnyvale, Calif., who shot 68.

The Boys 10 division is also close with three players tied at the top of the leaderboard. Wen Liang Xie, of China, Ricky Castillo, of Yorba Linda, Calif., and Christo Lamprecht, of South Africa, each posted 70s out at Little River.

Elizabeth Moon leads the Girls 11 field by three after a 68 at Southern Pines Golf Club. Youngin Chun, of Korea, fired a 71.

Clare Amelia Legaspe, of the Philippines, and Kaley Marschke, of Suwannee, Ga., both lead the Girls 12 division by a shot after shooting 70 at Pinehurst No. 3. Muni He, of Canada, is alone in second.

Finally, in the Boys 12 division at Pinehurst No. 4, WonJun Lee, of Korea, is two shots clear of the field with a 65. Sean Chang, of Aberdeen, is tied for 116th with an 82.

The three-round championship concludes Saturday.