Lydia Ko is aiming for more wins.
The 26-year-old New Zealander shot a six-under 66 in the third round of the Blue Bay LPGA in China on Saturday, climbing the leaderboard and taking a share of the lead with a total of 12 under.
She is tied for the top spot with two American athletes, Bailey Tardy and Sarah Schmelzel.
“I played really well on the front nine, just like before.” [on Friday]” said Ms. Ko.
“It’s not often that I’m 3 under two days in a row. The chip-in eagle on 3 was definitely a good impetus for me to pitch well.”
Ko got off to a strong start and maintained that momentum throughout the front nine.
With birdie on number 2, 3rd place eagleKo had birdies on the 6th and 8th and finished with a 5-under 31.
“I’ve never put myself in such a strange place, and I think it’s very easy to do that here,” Coe added.
I calmed down on the back nine and made bogey on the 10th. But she bounced back with a birdie on the par-5 14th, and she closed it out with another par-breaker on the par-5 18th.
Ko Chang is aiming for his second win of the season. She won her first event of the year, the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, held at Lake Nona in Orlando in January.
“It meant a lot to win the first event on the schedule, especially at my home club,” Ko added.
“I played well. I’m closing up shop in Bradenton. There’s still a lot of golf to play, but it looks like someone hit a very low score in at least one round. Pin location can make or break your score.” We all know that to be the case, so you just have to be patient and keep giving yourself a good look and see where it stands.”
Following the win in Orlando, Coe lost to Nelly Korda in a thrilling playoff at the LPGA Drive On Championship.
She then struggled a bit at her most recent tournament, the HSBC Women’s World Championship. Ko tied for 34th place and won with 1 over.
As for Tardi, her last top 10 finish was at last year’s U.S. Women’s Open. She has only played once this season, starting her year with a missed cut in Bradenton.
“I think it’s great,” Tardy said of his place on the leaderboard.
“I think a lot of your work and all your practice really shows. So I think I’ve worked really hard from my first LPGA event until now. I’m happy with the results.”
Tardi, like Ko, closed with a 6-under 66 on Saturday, including two birdies. Eagle on the 14th par 5.
Meanwhile, Schmelzel shot a 3-under 69 for the second day in a row.
Like Tardy, she also missed out on qualifying for the LPGA Drive-On Championship. However, she competed in the last two Asian Swing events, finishing tied for 31st in Thailand and tied for 8th in Singapore.
Although she has never won on the LPGA Tour, she is excited to play alongside Ko in Sunday’s final draw.
“She’s just a great representative of the game and someone I think we can all look up to,” Schmelzel said of Ko.
“I think it’s going to be really fun for me to be able to learn from her on Sundays like this and be around her and experience what a Sunday with Lydia is like. It will be fun because it’s what we all dream of.”
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through.Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Cover more golf. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko In the same way.
