“My goal for this week was to play with no expectations.”
On a day when scores were low at Seowon Hills at Seowon Valley Country Club in Korea, Ashleigh Buhai took advantage.
After taking five weeks off because an old back injury flared up, Buhai returned in fashion to the LPGA, carding a bogey-free 10-under 62 to hold the first-round lead at the 2023 BMW Ladies Championship. Buhai had 10 birdies and eight pars and leads Alison Lee by a shot after Thursday.
“I think it was almost a blessing in disguise after a very busy summer,” Buhai said of her time off. “I’ve had one week of practice coming into here. And my goal for this week was to play with no expectations, and that’s often when you try to play well in a game.”
The 62 is a career-best round for Buhai, the 2022 AIG Women’s Open champion.
Of the 78 players in the field, only 10 shot over par, one of those being young phenom Rose Zhang, who shot 2-over 74.
Meanwhile, Lee’s 9-under performance was also bogey-free, including two stretches of three consecutive birdies. Ayaka Furue and Minjee Lee are tied for third at 8 under.
“Overall, I hit the ball really well,” Alison Lee said. “I gave myself a lot of putts inside 15 feet and was able to make almost all of them. I may have one putt that was a little longer, like 25, 30 feet. But other than that, I gave myself a lot of good birdie opportunities today.”
Lydia Ko, the defending champion, shot 5-under 67.
Ko posted the highest round of her LPGA career, an opening 80, at the recent BMW Ladies Championship.
Jin Young Ko used four words and two emojis on Monday to caption a photograph on Instagram. Anyone looking for insight into the World No. 1’s frame of mind after last week’s withdrawal got the message loud and clear.
“Accept, think, move on,” Ko wrote, followed by a twister emoji.
The BMW Ladies Championship surely felt something like a raging storm for the World No. 1. Ko teed it up close to home in her first event in two months after taking time off to heal a nagging wrist injury.
The player who often wins tournaments after long breaks, instead posted the highest round of her LPGA career, an opening 80. Ko made a 10 on the closing par 5, whiffing a shot left-handed and mostly making a mess of the hole. She shot 79 on Friday and then withdrew.
Ko, 27, told South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency after the first round that she didn’t want to use her wrist injury as an excuse. But after 36 holes, it was clear that something wasn’t right.
Ko’s manager told Golfweek on Monday that she hasn’t yet fully recovered from the left wrist injury and is currently receiving treatment. She will do her best to be able to compete in better condition next month in Florida.
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There are three events remaining on the LPGA schedule. Ko never planned to play in Japan but did have her sights set on the last two events. She won last year’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship while playing in so much pain she couldn’t properly warm up before each round.
Last week in South Korea, Ko came close to being overtaken as World No. 1 with rookie Atthaya Thitikul heading into the final round holding the lead. No. 2-ranked Thitikul could’ve risen to No. 1 with a solo fourth-place finish. A disappointing 74 on Sunday, however, dropped the young Thai star into sixth.
Ko has occupied the top spot for 38 consecutive weeks and 144 weeks total. She won in her first start of the season – the HSBC Women’s World Championship in March.
“That last putt, I couldn’t really see the ball because of my tears.”
Na Yeon Choi wasn’t going to cry. But then after she hit her tee shot on the 18th, Amy Yang said “Good job” and started to sob. Choi followed suit.
“That last putt,” she said, “I couldn’t really see the ball because of my tears.”
Choi’s final LPGA event proved unforgettable for a number of reasons. During the third round, the 35-year-old South Korean aced the par-3 12th at the BMW Ladies Championship to win a BMW X7 SUV.
On Sunday at Oak Valley Country Club, several LPGA players held up a banner as she wrapped up a decorated career that spanned 18 years. Choi finished with a sparkling 68. Among the players who came out to support was Inbee Park, an LPGA Hall of Famer who wasn’t in the field this week.
“I would first like to thank my friends for coming all the way from Seoul,” she said. “My friends really supported me during tough times. To support each other and wish the best for each other whilst playing in the same tour, as professional golfers is actually harder than it looks, but Inbee, So Yeon, Jeongeun have helped greatly with golf and mentally as well. So I am really grateful for the five players who are here today.”
Inbee Park of South Korea, So-yeon Ryu of South Korea and former player Ha-neul Kim of South Korea hold a banner to appreciate Na-yeon Choi (not pictured) who is retiring near the 9th green during the final round of the BMW Ladies Championship at Oak Valley Country Club on October 23, 2022 in Wonju, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
Choi won nine times on the LPGA, including the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open, and rose as high as No. 2 in the world. Choi made the decision to retire earlier this season and asked BMW for a sponsor exemption into this week. She said she leaves the tour with no regrets.
Through her popular YouTube channel, Choi learned that she likes to teach. She’d like to do some of that in the future, if she can figure out a way to do it that’s healthy for her.
“My only concern with this is that personally I think I got really worn out from the emotional side of being a golfer,” she said. “For instance, if I don’t play well, then there’s stress, and I’m struggling with all these emotions. It kind of wore me down. My only concern is I might relate too much to the players or kids that I teach, and I do have a fear about me getting into that emotional cycle again.”
She also has an interest in golf commentary in South Korea.
As for immediate plans, Choi said she had wanted to go out drinking with friends.
“I don’t know if this makes me old, but I am getting dental implants,” she said, “so I cannot drink alcohol right now. But other than that, I am loving the fact that I no longer have to get up at 4 or 5 a.m.”
Choi said her ace on Saturday came off as exactly as she’d imagined. She immediately had goosebumps after she struck her 6-iron from 171 yards. Adding to the serendipitous moment was that fact that CME Group donates $20,000 for each hole-in-one made on the LPGA to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
“Of course, whenever you ace a hole, you’re ecstatic,” said Choi. “But at the same time, for me, I think I got kind of emotional because it almost seemed like I was being rewarded for all those years of hard work.”
Now with 18 career titles, Ko sits 30th on the LPGA’s career wins list, joining Meg Mallon and Hollis Stacy.
Lydia Ko teared up on the 18th when her last putt dropped at the BMW Ladies Championship. A prolific winner worldwide since her teenage years, the 25-year-old Ko always wanted to win in her native South Korea.
The former world No. 1 birdied three of the last four holes to clinch her second title of 2022, closing with a 7-under 65 to best Andrea Lee by four strokes. Overnight leader Atthaya Thitikul had a chance to rise to No. 1 after this week, but a disappointing 74 dropped her into sixth place. The Thai teen needed to finish solo fourth to have a chance.
“I think this week more than ever, I said I really, really want to win in Korea,” said Ko, “and I think maybe that was a good mindset or I was hypnotizing myself to try to get it done, but that’s why it means so much to me.
“Every time I come back to Korea, even though I play under the New Zealand flag, so many people support me, so many people go (Korean). I think that is such a boost.”
Lydia Ko of New Zealand is poured champagne after winning the tournament on the 18th green during the final round of the BMW Ladies Championship at Oak Valley Country Club on October 23, 2022 in Wonju, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
This also marked the first time Ko’s father has seen her compete in person in 2½ years. Ko teared up again at the thought of having him there.
Ko calls this her most consistent season to date. She hasn’t missed a cut in 20 starts and in addition to her two wins has nine additional top-5 finishes.
She became the fifth player to win multiple times this season, joining Jennifer Kupcho (3), Minjee Lee (2), Brooke Henderson (2) and Thitikul (2).
Now with 18 career titles, Ko sits 30th on the LPGA’s career wins list, joining Meg Mallon and Hollis Stacy. It’s the first time she has won multiple titles in one season since 2016.
“I think this is probably the best I’ve played, the most consistently I’ve played. When I was No. 1, I just had more wins in that season. I don’t think I’ve had as many top 10s,” said Ko. “I wanted to finish my season off strong, including this one, with only three events to go. To be able to win this one means a lot, and I think it gives me good motivation for my last couple of events in Florida.”
Ko came into this event with a sizable lead over Minjee Lee in the Vare Trophy race for the season’s lowest scoring average. She won the award last season as well, earning an LPGA Hall of Fame point in the process. A player must earn 27 points to enter the LPGA HOF. Ko currently has 22 points.
Victory in Korea! 🇰🇷
Check out Lydia Ko's final round highlights from the BMW Ladies Championship! pic.twitter.com/2lVsbVfSGh
Earlier in the week, Ko pointed to her even-keeled approach to the second half of the season as a key to her success. She also mentioned that she’s in a good place in life off the course as well. Ko and her fiancé, Chung Jun, plan to get married in December.
“I have to say, wherever my fiancé is, he is always in my heart, so it’s like he is near me,” Ko said, when asked if he was on hand for the victory.
“I have a lot of people congratulate me and a lot of people are very much interested, and so I really thank them for their support and interest. I have a lot of fans coming up to me and congratulating me, so I’m very grateful for the attention and congratulations I’m getting.
“However, this is the BMW Ladies Championship, and I don’t want to take away from this event, so I hope you understand I would like to conclude my comments about my marriage with that.”
Ko heads into the last three events of the season with much on the line. She will skip the next event in Japan and play the last two in Florida. The victory in South Korea moved her one point ahead of Lee in the Rolex Player of the Year race, an award she won in 2015. Brooke Henderson is 20 points back, and Thitikul trails by 21.
A player must finish inside the top 10 to earn POY points, with a victory garnering 30 points.
Despite the poor finish, the rookie Thitikul left South Korea feeling good about her game after seeing her swing coach in person for the first time since August. She will compete next on the LPGA in Japan.
As for the prospect of becoming the second teenager to rise to No. 1 in the world, Thitikul brushed it aside.
“I mean, to be honest, I don’t really care about the ranking,” she said ahead of Sunday’s round. “I don’t really care to be like No. 1 in the world at all because I play golf because I want to take care of my family. I want to feed my family. Whatever I am is fine. Even my family, they have a good life already.
Ko, 25, has eight top-five finishes in her last 11 starts.
Lydia Ko won five times on the LPGA in 2015 and four times in 2016. Yet she calls this season, in which she has won only once, her most consistent yet.
The proof is in her scoring average. Heading into this week’s BMW Ladies Championship, Ko’s 69.176 average led the tour. Minjee Lee, her nearest competitor, would need to average 68.389 in her remaining events to pass the Kiwi. Xiyu Lin and Brooke Henderson would have to average rounds of 66.480 or better to have any chance.
Ko, 25, has eight top-five finishes in her last 11 starts dating to the U.S. Women’s Open. During that stretch, she has gained 2.84 strokes against the field per round.
“Even when I was No. 1, I had won more frequently in that season and didn’t have as many top 10s or the percentage of top 10s compared to how many events I was playing,” said Ko. “I’m getting older, so I am playing less events than my rookie year or my first few years on tour, but it’s definitely nice to be in contention a little bit more frequently, and I think that just boosts the confidence levels.
“I think at the end of the day, it’s a momentum thing. You know, when you start playing well, it would defeat off the good energy, the good things that went on from the week before and trying to feed on the week after. I think I’ve been able to do that pretty well.”
Ko currently holds a share of fifth at the BMW, four strokes back of leader Andrea Lee, after matching rounds of 68.
A 17-time winner on the LPGA, Ko won the Vare Trophy for the first time last season. The award comes with an LPGA Hall of Fame point. A player must earn 27 points to enter the LPGA HOF. Ko currently has 21 points.
“I think especially at this last kind of from the middle of the season to where it is now,” said Ko, “I don’t think I’ve ever gotten too hyped up about it or too down and that’s just allowed me to play more freely. That’s a good place for me to personally be at.”
“I’m just playing really carefree golf, and I’m really relaxed out there. Just having fun.”
Andrea Lee’s first time playing golf in South Korea couldn’t go better if she scripted it. Lee remains bogey-free after 36 holes at the BMW Ladies Championship where she leads by two at 12 under over longtime friend Lilia Vu, hotshot rookie Atthaya Thitikul and 16-year-old amateur Minsol Kim.
Lee, who birdied three of her last four holes, has missed only two greens and two fairways in her matching rounds of 66. The former Stanford star said she’s used to the hilly terrain of Oak Valley Country Club having grown up at Palos Verdes Golf Club in California.
“I think it just gave me so much confidence after that win in Portland,” she said, “and I’m just playing really carefree golf, and I’m really relaxed out there. Just having fun. I don’t feel the pressure anymore to get that first win. I feel comfortable being atop the leaderboards now, and you know, hopefully I can just keep it rolling.”
Lee, 24, saw her 91-year-old grandfather for the first time in three years this week and looks forward to having him come out this weekend.
“The Koreans, they love golf,” she said. “They are so passionate, emotional about it. So it’s great to feed off of their energy. They are definitely rooting for all the Korean players out here. I’m Korean-American, so I feel like they are rooting for me, too, and it’s nice to have that.”
Lilia Vu of the USA watches her shot after teeing off during the second round of the BMW Ladies Championship golf tournament at Oak Valley Country Club in Wonju on October 21, 2022. (Photo by Jung Yeon-je / AFP) (Photo by JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images)
Vu bounced back after her first bogey of the tournament on the 14th with an eagle on the par-5 15th. A prolific winner at UCLA, Vu finished third in Portland the week that Lee won and has six top-10 finishes this season. This is also her first time competing in South Korea, and she spent Friday alongside Lee and 2020 U.S. Women’s Open champion A Lim Kim.
“I mean, definitely a little bit of like an adjustment for me to get used to because (when) she would hit it pretty close, everyone would start yelling,” said Vu of the crowd’s reaction to Kim. “I hit a couple shots to three feet today. Maybe a half-clap from my parents. Yeah, so it’s kind of different, but it’s fun. They are very spirited here.”
There are a number of scenarios in which Thitikul will rise to No. 1 in the world this week. A victory would get her there. She can also finish as low as fourth and still climb to No. 1 if Jin Young Ko finishes solo 29th or worse and Minjee Lee does not win.
World No. 1 Ko opened with an 80 that included a 10 on the 18th hole. Friday wasn’t much better. A double-bogey and eight bogeys led Ko to shoot 79, one day after carding the worst round of her LPGA career. She did card an eagle on the 15th.
Ko hit seven fairways and 10 greens in the second round and is currently last in a field of 78. This marks Ko’s first event back since taking two months off to heal an injured left wrist.
Jin Young Ko has made a habit of coming out strong after long breaks from competition.
Jin Young Ko returns to action on the LPGA this week for the first time since late August. Top-ranked Ko took time off to rehabilitate a nagging left wrist injury. While Ko is defending champion at this week’s BMW Ladies Championship, the event is being held at a new location: Oak Valley Country Club in Wonju, South Korea.
“I was not able to practice as much as I thought I would,” said Ko of her time away, “but when I did have the time to practice, I really focused on those sessions.
“I’m really into yoga these days, and I went to the yoga center learned yoga and that helped me train on my mental side. For the last two months, basically I’ve been kind of doing that, and I’m very happy to be in the competition.”
Six of the top 10 players in the world are in the field this week, including rookie Atthaya Thitikul (2) Minjee Lee (3), Lydia Ko (5), Nasa Hataoka (9) and Hyo-Joo Kim (10).
Ko said she took plenty of breaks while practicing to protect her wrist and also took part in acupuncture treatments.
“During the past five to six weeks while I was in Korea,” said Ko, “the weather was warm and so it wasn’t so painful, but today it got a little colder. The temperature is lower and the grass is firmer, so that may impact my wrist some. But I will not give up and I will continue to do my best.”
Last year, Ko won the CME Group Tour Championship while dealing with so much wrist pain that she couldn’t even warm up before each round.
Jin Young Ko kisses the winner’s trophy after the final round of the BMW Ladies Championship at LPGA International Busan on October 24, 2021 in Busan, South Korea. (Photo: Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
Ko has made a habit of coming out strong after long breaks from competition. She famously won her first LPGA start as a member at the 2018 ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open.
In 2020, Ko came back from an extended break during the COVID-19 pandemic to play her way into the CME Group Tour Championship in only four starts and win the season-ending title.
Last year, Ko skipped the AIG Women’s British Open to work on her swing and came back after more than a month away to win her first start back at the Portland Classic. She’d go on to win three more times to close out the season.
Earlier this year, Ko came back from an extended offseason to win her first start at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in March.
A 13-time winner on the LPGA, Ko last cracked the top five on tour in June at the U.S. Women’s Open. She’s been ranked No. 1 for 38 consecutive weeks and 144 total.
“I would be lying if I said that there was absolutely no pressure when it comes to maintaining that ranking,” said Ko, “but I have to say I am more interested right now in practicing because I want to be more satisfied with my golf instead of the title, the No. 1 player,” said Ko. “I’m surrounded by very talented players, though I never thought initially that ranking, that title was forever.”
In Gee Chun won’t tee it up at home this week in South Korea at the BMW Ladies Championship. The three-time major champion took a four-week break from her golf clubs after an MRI and X-ray tests showed inflammation in the shoulder area and a diagnosis of Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, according to her longtime coach Won Park.
Chun, 28, last competed on the LPGA in August at the CP Women’s Open in Canada. Her last start came in mid-September at the KB Financial Group Star Championship on the KLPGA. In addition to this week’s BMW, Chun missed the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America and Mediheal Championship as a result of injury.
In Gee Chun holds the trophy after wining the 2022 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photo: Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports)
Chun won the KPMG Women’s PGA at Congressional in June and lost in a playoff at the AIG Women’s British Open at Muirfield in August. She’s currently ranked No. 7 in the world.
Chun plans to return to the LPGA for the Pelican Women’s Championship in mid-November as well as the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, where the winner receives $2 million.
After a third-round 65, Hee Jeong Lim is 18 under and four shots ahead of fellow South Koreans Jin Young Ko and Na Rin An.
It’s hard to catch a player who doesn’t make mistakes, and that’s exactly what’s allowed Hee Jeong Lim to begin pulling away at the BMW Ladies Championship. Lim, a South Korean player who has won four times on the KLPGA, hasn’t made a bogey yet in three rounds at Busan International in Busan, South Korea.
After a third-round 65, she’s 18 under and four shots ahead of her closest pursuers, fellow South Koreans Jin Young Ko and Na Rin An.
“I think recently there was an event where I had one bogey-free round. But three consecutive bogey-free rounds I think is a first time for me,” said Lim.
One thing contributing to Lim’s remarkable consistency is her accuracy. The 21-year-old missed her first fairway of the week on Saturday at the 11th hole.
“I wasn’t necessarily aware of the fact that that was the first fairway that I missed during this event. But I’m not really used to missing the fairway. I usually keep the fairway pretty well,” said Lim. “So being in the rough itself was a bit awkward I would have to say.”
We're through 54 holes in the BMW Ladies Championship!
Interestingly, Lim’s nickname on the KLPGA is “Stone Buddha,” which is a nod to the mental strength, resolve and calmness she displays on the course.
If Lim can hold on for another round, she’d become only the second non-member winner of the 2021 LPGA season, joining U.S. Women’s Open champion Yuka Saso from the Philippines. An would be in that same boat and both women would earn immediate LPGA tour membership from their win.
Ko, a former world No. 1, is not to be counted out, having won three times in the past four months. On the line for Ko, too, is a return to the top spot in the Rolex Rankings, a position currently occupied for Nelly Korda.
The top of the leaderboard is heavily occupied by South Koreans – not just Lim, An and Ko but also Hae Ran Ryu in the T4 position and In Gee Chun in the T-6 position – and the next win by a player from South Korea will be the 200th on tour. The vast majority of those victories (103 to be exact) came from 2010-2019. South Koreans have won 12 times since 2020.
Danielle Kang remains the highest American in the mix after rounds of 66-68-69 left her 13 under and tied for fourth with Ryu.
Notably, Minjee Lee, winner of six LPGA events including one major, is tied for sixth another shot back while American Alison Lee and Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn are tied for eighth at 11 under.
Another former world No. 1, Lydia Ko, is 9 under and tied for 12th.
Na Rin An paces the field after an 8-under 64, tying the record set by Danielle Kang in 2019 at LPGA International Busan.
It was raining. It was cold. It was tough. And it all added up to Jin Young Ko’s streak of 14 consecutive rounds in the 60s coming to an end. The former No. 1 birdied the last hole at the BMW Ladies Championship to shoot 1-under 71. She had previously tied the record of 14 set by Annika Sorenstam and So Yeon Ryu.
“I think I was able to tie with Annika and So Yeon because I worked hard every moment and I gave it my best every hole and every shot,” said Ko. “So I think that this in itself is really meaningful, and really 14 consecutive rounds in the 60s is not easy. I worked hard a lot, and also you need a bit of luck as well.”
Na Rin An paces the field after an 8-under 64, tying the record set by Danielle Kang in 2019 at LPGA International Busan. A two-time winner on the Korean LPGA, An holds a one-shot lead over In Gee Chun and Ju Young Pak. A Lim Kim, Hae Ran Ryu and Kang are two back at 6 under.
The BMW marks An’s second start on the LPGA after a T-63 at the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open. The 69th-ranked player in the world, An is currently signed up for the final stage of LPGA Q-Series. A victory this week, however, would grant her LPGA membership.
“Overall I was extremely satisfied with my putting,” said An. “I think the putting went really well today, and that was behind my strong round.”
As Ko closes in on World No. 1 Nelly Korda, who is taking the week off, a top-10 finish at the BMW would clinch the LEADERS Top 10 competition and the $100,000 bonus. Ko currently has 10 top-10 finishes in 16 starts.
While the solo record of consecutive rounds in the 60s will have to wait for another day for Ko, there is another honor on the line. A victory this week in Busan from Ko or any other of her compatriots would make it the 200th title for a South Korean player on tour.
“I think it’s kind of a fascinating coincidence that we are playing in an event in Korea when that event will determine whether we will see a 200th win by a Korean player on the LPGA Tour,” said Ko.
“Obviously there are a lot of Korean players in the field, and I think I will be happy for anyone to gain that win. Of course, I will try my best. And if I were to be that Korean player to record the 200th win, it will really be an honor and a joy.”
