Tag: hyo joo kim

Sarah Schmelzel, tied for lead at 2024 Ford Championship, seeks first LPGA win in home state

Live final round coverage will start on Peacock at 4:30 p.m. ET and Golf Channel will come on at 6 p.m. ET.

GILBERT, Ariz. — A variety of LPGA golfers with local ties have been making noise this week at the inaugural Ford Championship in this Phoenix suburb.

On a breezy Saturday, former Arizona State golfer Carlota Ciganda made her move up the leaderboard at Seville Golf and Country Club with a 6-under 66 a round that included two eagles and nearly a third, as her chip on the par-5 18th just missed.

“Very happy with the 6 under,” she said. “The wind is really strong. Lots of side winds, and it’s just, yeah, it’s just hard. I think if you can hit greens it’s good shots. There are some holes that are playing downhill and you can take advantage, as well as the par 5s.”

Sitting at 15 under, Ciganda already has a number in mind for Sunday, a day that is expected to be 20 degrees cooler than Saturday with a 60 percent chance of rain.

“I think you still need to get to probably 21-, 22-under to win,” she said. “Try to get to that number and hopefully that’s enough.”

Ciganda has two LPGA wins but none since 2016. Local product Sarah Schmelzel, meanwhile, is seeking her first LPGA win.

She opened with a 68, followed that up with 63 and is hanging around the top of the leaderboard after a Saturday 70. She had three back-nine birdies and just missed another on 18 that would’ve given her the solo 54-hole lead.

“Today was tough,” she told Golf Channel after her round. “It was almost like the weather was a like a bit of a distraction. It was tough out there. It was a grind to just shoot under par this afternoon.”

So far this season, Schmelzel has a T-8, a solo second and a T-8 in her last three starts. And as for making the Phoenix area this week the time and place for her first LPGA win?

“It’s definitely something I have thought about since I was a little kid,” she admitted. “It’s something that’s in the back of my mind, but I gotta stay in the present and if it works out, it works out.”

The third member of the three-way tie for the lead is Hyo Joo Kim, who birdied three of her first four holes but then stalled, stringing together 14 straight pars to shoot a 3-under 69. Kim has a major among her six wins. A win this week would give her a fourth straight season with a victory.

Two are tied for fourth, a shot back: Maja Stark, who had one of the day’s better rounds with a 6-under 66, and Yuka Saso, who overcame a four-putt double bogey on the 15th hole with birdies on Nos. 16 and 18 to get to 14 under.

On a day when the winds gusted up to 35 miles per hour, Mi Hyang Lee produced the best round, an 8-under 64, which put her into a 10-way tie for sixth at 13 under, two shots back. That huge cluster of golfers at 13 under includes Lexi Thompson, Sei Young Kim, Nelly Korda and Lydia Ko.

Hira Naveed shot 7-under 65, the second-best score on Saturday. She’s tied for 16th at 12 under with Ayaka Furue and Lilia Vu.

Despite the heavy wind, only 11 of the 75 golfers who made the cut posted over-par scores, including Peiyun Chien, who shot 65 on Friday and 76 on Saturday.

There are 34 golfers at double-digits under par through 54 holes.

In anticipation of weather Sunday, the LPGA announced that for the final round, golfers will go off split tees in groups of three. The first group will start at 9:08 a.m. local time (12:08 p.m. ET) and leaders will tee off at 11:20 a.m. local time (2:20 p.m. ET).

Live final round coverage will start on Peacock at 4:30 p.m. ET and Golf Channel will come on at 6 p.m. ET.

LPGA players who made big moves up and down the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings in 2023

It was a year of big moves – in both directions – and the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings tells the tale.

Most of the 2023 LPGA season was entirely unpredictable. Few could’ve guessed that Lilia Vu would win two majors or that Lydia Ko would fail to qualify for the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, which she won the year before.

It was a year of big moves – in both directions – and the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings tells the tale.

How they work:

Jeff Sagarin’s rating system is based on a mathematical formula that uses a player’s won-lost-tied record against other players when they play on the same course on the same day, and the stroke differential between those players, then links all players to one another based on common opponents. The ratings give an indication of who is playing well over the past 52 weeks.

Also, players must have played in at least 10 events to be ranked. Editor’s note: We’ve included the Rolex rankings for the sake of comparison.

Hyo Joo Kim goes wire-to-wire at Ascendant LPGA to collect sixth LPGA title

Kim has now won on the LPGA in each of the past three seasons.

Hyo Joo Kim became the third player to go wire-to-wire on the LPGA this season at the 2023 Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America in Texas. The South Korean began the day with a five-shot lead and never wavered, clinching her sixth career victory with a closing 69. Kim finished with a 13-under total, four strokes ahead of Bianca Pagdanganan and Atthaya Thitikul.

“My results this year wasn’t bad,” said Kim, “but there was some disappointment because I didn’t have a win. I had a lot of the time to think just for myself, and before this year passes, I really want to win.

“This week I was able to accomplish that, and it was just a really happy week for me.”

With the victory, Kim earned $270,000 and crossed the $2 million mark in season earnings for the first time in her career. She has now won on the LPGA in each of the past three seasons.

The long-bombing Pagdanganan shot 30 on the back nine to close with a 65 and vault into a share of second. Her share of second, coupled with a T-3 last week in Arkansas, secures her LPGA card for 2024 in only 10 starts. Thitikul birdied five of her last seven holes, but no one could rattle Kim.

“Short game is pretty much everything in this sport,” said Pagdanganan, “so I’ve been just putting in more time with chipping, putting, everything around the green. I really can say that the last two weeks that’s kind of what saved my game.”

2023 Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America
Atthaya Thitikul of Thailand and Bianca Pagdanganan of the Philippines look on over the 16th green during the final round of the 2023 Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America at Old American Golf Club in The Colony, Texas. (Photo: Sam Hodde/Getty Images)

For Kemp, it was a step closer to securing her spot in the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, which includes the top 60 and ties in the year-long points race. CME is a personal sponsor of Kemp’s.

“It’s all I want to make,” said Kemp. “It’s my sponsor’s event, so I want to make it for Terry Duffy. They have been so good to me. I just want to make it so bad for them.”

Lexi Thompson entered the final round in a share of second but ended the day solo fifth at Old American Golf Club. Still, Thompson was very happy with her play as she heads into the PGA Tour event in Las Vegas next week.

“I’ll definitely need my top game going into next week,” said Thompson. “Get that driver more in tune. Didn’t hit it too much on this golf course, but I’m going to need it I’m sure there.”

Past champion Cheyenne Knight, who lives nearby and practices at Shady Oaks Country Club, closed with a bogey-free 63 to move into sixth place.

“I wasn’t feeling that great this morning,” said Knight. “It’s just been I feel like I’m just a little bit tired just like since Solheim. Just kind of been going.

“Once I tee’d off I was like, all right, you got 18 more holes and then I get a break, because I’m not playing until Malaysia. Told myself to enjoy it and kind of put but things into perspective. My family is out here watching and kind of get out of my own way a little bit.

Monday qualifier Katherine Muzi, playing in her first LPGA event, tied for seventh. Muzi played college golf at USC and South Carolina, where she worked at the latter toward a graduate certificate in data and communication. Because next week’s LPGA stop in China is a limited-field event, Muzi’s top 10 in Texas does not get her in.

“The whole thing has been surreal,” said Muzi, “especially this being my first ever LPGA event. Like ever. And then I just a happen to be a pro just playing in it. It’s crazy.”

Hyo Joo Kim leads The Ascendant LPGA by four, Lexi Thompson tied for second after even-par 71

Kim is looking for her first win of the season.

On a day where any score around even par would be considered a success, Hyo Joo Kim shot an even-par 71 and now holds a four-shot lead at 10 under at The Ascendant LPGA Benefitting Volunteers of America. The event is being held at Old American Golf Club in The Colony, Texas.

Kim was 2 over through her first six holes on Saturday but started to battle back with a birdie at the par-4 8th. She’d add four more birdies to her card on the back nine — and one bogey — to solidify her even-par effort. The 7th-ranked player in the world is looking for her first top-10 finish since the AIG Women’s Open (T-4).

The Ascendant LPGA: Leaderboard

Alongside Sarah Kemp (2-under 69 on Saturday, 6 under overall) in second place is Lexi Thompson, who is gearing up for a special opportunity. Thompson will be teeing it up alongside the boys next week at the PGA Tour’s Shriners Children’s Open at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas.

Thompson was 3 over through five holes on Saturday but recovered nicely with four birdies and a bogey on the rest of her card to sign for an even-par 71. Kemp, on the other hand, shot an impressive 2-under 69.

Final-round coverage will be streamed live Sunday afternoon from 2-5 p.m. ET on Peacock. A taped version of the broadcast will be shown on Golf Channel at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Charley Hull, Lilia Vu tied for lead, Ally Ewing stumbles at AIG Women’s Open

Catch up on the action here.

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Ally Ewing was in complete control after her Friday 6-under 66 at the AIG Women’s Open, leading by five shots. But after stumbling to a 3-over 75 at Walton Heath in England, Ewing will tee off two shots out of the lead Sunday.

Charley Hull made one of the moves of the day, firing a 4-under 68 to grab a share of the 54-hole lead with Lilia Vu. Vu, who won the Chevron Championship earlier this season, was one better than Hull on Day 3, shooting a 5-under 67.

“I think today was really about for me just in terms of confidence,” Vu said after her round. “It’s been a while since I played — I say awhile. It’s been since Chevron that I actually felt pretty decent about my game and where it’s at.

“So I’m just going to do the same thing I did today, just focusing on tee shots and giving myself a good opportunity for birdies, and just do that tomorrow, not think too much about the wind. Because every time that happens, it just slips away from me.”

The pair, at 9 under, is one shot clear of their closest chasers, Hyo Joo Kim and Angel Yin. Kim shot a third-round 68 while Yin signed for a 67.

There are several big names lurking a few shots back, including Linn Grant (6 under), Nasa Hataoka (4 under) and Nelly Korda (4 under).

“Tee-to-green really well. Putting, I’d probably give myself a D,” Korda said. “It was — I started off pretty well and then on the back nine, I just kind of started making more mistakes with the short stick.

“But overall, I would say I moved up on moving day, and conditions were tough and I’ll take that.”

Jin Young Ko is 1 under and eight back, while Rose Zhang slid down the board thanks to a 3-over 75 and will tee off Sunday 11 back of the leaders.

Final round coverage will be broadcasted on USA Network 7 a.m.-12 p.m. ET Sunday before switching to Golf Channel from 12-2 p.m. ET.

Meet the top 10 players in contention at the Chevron Championship and what they’re saying about a potential jump in a new pond

Will the winner jump or not?

THE WOODLANDS, Texas — Angel Yin remembers vividly a practice round she had with Cristie Kerr several years ago at an LPGA Drive On event in Georgia.

“She was walking after she hit a tee shot off a practice round, and she was like, ‘I’m four days away from people knowing I’m back,'” said Yin.

“That’s the confidence. Every day I tell myself that: ‘Just channel your Cristie Kerr.'”

Yin hasn’t yet won on the LPGA and co-leads the 2023 Chevron Championship with Allisen Corpuz, another American player looking for her first LPGA victory at the year’s first major. The third-round leaderboard at the Club at Carlton Woods is littered with players looking for a break-through week – whether that’s a first-time LPGA victory or a maiden major win.

Only a trio in a share of sixth know what it’s like to win a major – Nelly Korda, Hyo Joo Kim and A Lim Kim, who won her first major down the road in Houston at the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open at Champion Golf Club.

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Here’s a breakdown of the top 10 players at the Chevron, and what some are saying about the champion’s leap:

Carefree Lydia Ko in command by five at season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, where the winner earns $2 million

Lydia Ko is in position to finish her season strong.

NAPLES, Fla. – Leona Maguire took a vastly different road to the LPGA than Lydia Ko, ruling the women’s amateur scene for years as a standout at Duke. A dozen years ago, a 27-year-old Maguire teed it up with a 13-year-old Ko at the World Amateur Team Championship in Argentina.

“She was a phenom then getting ready to turn pro,” said Maguire. “I remember her short game was incredible. A wedge shot didn’t go outside 3, 4 feet.”

Players still marvel at Ko, who at 25 is enjoying a magnificent career resurgence. After a second-round 66, Ko leads the field by five at the CME Group Tour Championship at 13-under 131. A victory here would shore up her first LPGA Player of the Year award since 2015, not to mention a $2 million payday.

Ko said she wanted to finish the season with no regrets, playing freely.

“I think when I play freely,” said Ko, “I’m not being tentative. I’m controlling how the shot is going to go. I think that way it’s just a little bit stress-free.

“If I do miss it, hey, like, I’m going to miss one here and there. So it’s just a better place for me to be at. And obviously when the nerves kick in, that bit is a lot harder, but I think when I was struggling, I got more and more tentative and trying to control the ball and trying to make it work.”

While she hasn’t mathematically clinched the Vare Trophy for low scoring average, it’s basically a done deal. To rise to No. 1 in the world again, she’d have to win and have Nelly Korda finish solo 21st or worse. In 2015, Ko became the youngest player to ever reach No. 1 in the world ­– male or female – at age 17.

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Korda sits in a share of third with Anna Nordqvist, Gemma Dryburgh, and Nasa Hataoka, six strokes back. Hyo Joo Kim sits alone in second at 8 under. Maguire, a first-time winner this season, is at 6 under with Amy Yang and Jeongeun Lee6.

Top-ranked Korda, who is wearing her new signature line with J.Lindeberg this week, made four birdies on the front nine and then parred the last nine holes after the putter went dry.

“They’ve kind of used a lot of the Sunday pins,” said Korda, who won last week’s Pelican LPGA Championship.

“I would say, 16, 17, they kind of put them in the back just over a bunker. When you kind of get on one of those ridges that it can break either way, like, it just happens that occasionally you don’t roll them in.”

Nelly Korda gives a smile on the 18th green during the second round of the CME Group Tour Championship at Tiburon Golf Club on Nov. 18, 2022 in Naples, Florida. (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

Ko, a two-time winner on tour this season and the 2014 CME champion, leads the LPGA in strokes gained total per round and strokes gained putting per round this season. Coming into this event she had made 201 putts of 10 feet or longer this season, eight more than any other player on tour.

Ko tops the tour in putts per green in relegation with a 1.72 average. She did the same in 2016 (1.71).

“I think during the times when I wasn’t hitting it as good, my short game improved,” said Ko. “So it’s good and bad, but I don’t feel like I’m the best putter in the world. I feel like there is so much room for improvement.”

Minjee Lee trails Ko by one point in the POY race. The Aussie bogeyed the last hole to shoot 68. She’s 5 under for the tournament in a share of 10th.

Coming into the event, Ko was 26 under at the CME over the past two years compared to Lee at 24 under.

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Hyo Joo Kim captures Lotte Championship for fifth LPGA win

Since 2012, the champion of the Lotte Championship has gone on to win multiple titles in the same year.

Hyo Joo Kim won for the fifth time on the LPGA Saturday in Hawaii, capturing the Lotte Championship by two shots over Hinako Shibuno.

Kim’s final-round 71 got her to 11 under for the week at at Hoakalei Country Club, which was hosting the event for the first time. She punctuated her win by chipping it close on the 18th hole and then making a short birdie putt.

“I’m proud of that shot,” said Kim. “Maybe I made a lot of people like sit on the edge of their chairs, so I felt great about it.”

Since 2012, the champion of the Lotte has gone on to win multiple LPGA titles in the same year.

Hye-Jin Choi was solo third at 7 under. Ashleigh Buhai was solo fourth at 6 under. Somi Lee was solo fifth at 5 under. Brianna Do, who Monday qualified, played in the final group after a third-round 67 but closed her week with a 5-over 77 to finish tied for 12th. Defending champion Lydia Ko tied for 18th at 1 under.

Six players withdrew from the event, including Brooke Henderson and Danielle Kang, who both did so after their first rounds.

Another ace

CME Group is donating $20,000 for every hole-in-one on the LPGA in 2022 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. There have been 10 aces so far this year with Giulia Molinaro making the latest on the par-3 15th hole in the final round of the Lotte Championship. Molinaro has a 50-degree wedge from 123 yards.

Up next

The LPGA heads to Los Angeles for back-to-back events: the DIO Implant LA Open at Wilshire Country Club and the Palos Verdes Championship at Palos Verdes Golf Club.

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Hyo Joo Kim leads by three at LPGA’s Lotte Championship; Monday qualifier Brianna Do three back

Ten-year pro Brianna Do, who Monday-qualified for the Lotte Championship, is tied for second.

A four-stroke lead after six holes dwindled to one but Hyo Joo Kim closed strong, rebuilding her lead back to three shots after 54 holes at the Lotte Championship.

A windy day at Hoakalei Country Club in Hawaii made things interesting for the field.

“There was a lot of wind going back and forth. I think it was difficult because it was not specifically directional,” said Kim, who started her week with a pair of 67s. “The pin position was also difficult compared to the first and second rounds. I had a hard time in that regard.”

Two golfers, Hinako Shibuno and Monday Qualifier Brianna Do, are tied for second at 7 under. The qualifier was actually Sunday due the tournament’s Wednesday-to-Saturday format. Do, who graduated from UCLA in 2012 and first earned LPGA membership in 2013, shot up the third-round leaderboard after firing a 5-under 67. She had six birdies and just one bogey in her round.

“I’ve been working to retool my swing a little bit to make it more reliable under pressure and kind of simplifying it and making more efficient. It’s kind of working,” said Do. “I had a few good weeks on the Epson Tour, and the goal was to Monday this week. I made the Monday. Then the goal was to make a check to get in the reshuffle, and I did that. And so now it’s trying to play my way into L.A. next week, just reevaluating goals as I go along.”

Do has never finished higher than 15th in an LPGA event.

Shibuno, who won the 2019 AIG Women’s Open, carded a bogey-free 68 on Friday.

Two-time tournament winner Brooke Henderson withdrew after her second round.

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Who’s in, who’s out, who’s hot heading into LPGA restart at HSBC Women’s World Championship

The event known as “Asia’s major” restarts the LPGA season this week after a month-long break.

The event known as “Asia’s major” restarts the LPGA season this week after a month-long break. LPGA Hall of Famer Inbee Park is the only two-time winner of the HSBC Women’s World Championship (2015, 2017), and she’s one of four past champions in the field, including last year’s winner Hyo Joo Kim, Sung Hyun Park (2019) and Stacy Lewis (2013).

This week also marks the return of World No. 1 Jin Young Ko, who spent much of the winter honing her game in the Palm Springs area. Here’s a closer look at this week’s field at the Sentosa Golf club, where the temperatures should be as hot as the competition.