Sei Young Kim blows all but 2 strokes of 8-shot lead in LA
LOS ANGELES — Sei Young Kim had an eight-stroke lead with 5 holes left Saturday at El Caballero Country Club in the JM Eagle LA Championship. She ended up needing to get up-and-down from off the again of the 18th inexperienced to salvage a two-shot benefit.
“Oh, wow, it feels like roller-coaster,” the 33-year-old South Korean stated.
Her late meltdown with 4 straight bogeys gave two-time occasion winner Hannah Green and others who thought they have been taking part in for second an opportunity Sunday in the ultimate occasion earlier than the primary ladies’s main of the season.
“It’s golf. It can happen again,” Kim stated. “It’s learn and then learn and learn. Mistake and then learn. Hopefully, success end of the day tomorrow.”
Kim shot a 1-under 71 to get to 15-under 201. Green, the 2023 and 2024 champion at Wilshire Country Club, had a 67 to hitch Suvichaya Vinijchaitham (67), Jessica Porvasnik (68) and Ina Yoon (71) at 13 beneath. Former UCLA star Patty Tavatanakit was one other stroke again after a 67.
“I’m just going to go out there and play golf,” Tavatanakit stated.
The match is being performed at El Caballero for the second straight yr as a result of of course renovations at Wilshire. The Chevron Championship is subsequent week in Houston for the primary of the 5 ladies’s main tournaments.
A shot forward coming into the day, Kim birdied the par-5 first and all the opposite odd-numbered holes on the entrance 9, working in a 20-footer on the par-3 ninth for a seven-stroke lead. She pushed the lead to eight earlier than falling again with the bogeys on Nos. 14-17.
“Every hole is downwind starting 15 until the 18,” stated Kim, who hit into the water on 16 going aggressively at a troublesome pin. “I was struggling with the downwind today.”
She received the BMW Ladies Championship final yr at residence in South Korea for the final of her 13 LPGA Tour titles.
“I’m very confident, but I just keep doing what I’m doing the last couple days,” Kim stated. “That’s what I can do the best. So we’ll see tomorrow.”
Green has three worldwide wins this yr: the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore on the LPGA Tour and the Women’s Australian Open and Australian WPGA in her residence nation.
“I don’t really know where they put the pin locations for tomorrow, but I’m sure they’ll be tricky and there will be some holes that will probably play easy,” Green stated. “I’ve noticed the last two days the wind is kind of switched at times, so that will be tricky to manage. The ball is going far off the tee.”
Amateur Asterisk Talley was tied for twenty third at 7 beneath after a 69. The 17-year-old Talley is taking part in her first occasion since dropping the lead on the again 9 in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.
During the spherical, the sponsors raised the purse $1 million to $4.75 million.
