MAINEVILLE, Ohio — Lydia Ko set an early goal and Jeeno Thitikul zoomed proper previous her Friday afternoon with three birdies over her final 4 holes for an additional 6-under 66 and a one-shot lead over Ko within the Kroger Queen Metropolis Championship.
Ko performed bogey-free with an eagle on the par-5 eighth gap for a 66. Thitikul performed within the afternoon, made birdie on all of the par 5s on the TPC River’s Bend and completed sturdy.
Thitikul hit pitching wedge over the water and averted going lengthy, establishing one ultimate birdie that put her at 12-under 132 going into the weekend.
Haeran Ryu, who received the FM Championship three weeks in the past for her first LPGA title, matched the low spherical of the day with a 65 and was two pictures behind.
A kind of low rounds belonged to Anna Nordqvist, who’s amongst 11 gamers who had been competing within the high-energy Solheim Cup final week. Additionally enjoying is Nelly Korda, the No. 1 participant in girls’s golf, who had a 70 and was 5 pictures behind.
Rose Zhang, who went 4-0 final week, was the one Solheim Cup participant to overlook the reduce. She made a late double bogey and by no means recovered, posting a 71 to overlook the weekend by one shot.
Thitikul is developing on the two-year anniversary of her final particular person victory. She teamed with Ruoning Yin to the win the Dow Championship this yr, and has given herself loads of different probabilities.
“Simply trying ahead for good golf and gratifying golf on the market,” Thitikul stated. “I feel a whole lot of good vibes coming from me, ranging from like Olympics. … I simply wish to play my recreation. Simply wish to management on my facet, not others.”
Ko has good vibes from a summer season she received’t quickly neglect. She received the gold medal on the Olympics, a victory that received her into the LPGA Corridor of Fame. After which she received the Ladies’s British Open for the second time, this one at St. Andrews.
Ko is coming off a three-week break and hasn’t proven any indicators of letting up.
Key to her spherical was her eagle on No. 8, and Ko gave the impression to be the least probably to do this. Zhang hit her second shot into brief vary. Charley Hull had 15 ft for eagle. Ko was off the inexperienced hopeful of getting up-and-down for birdie. As a substitute, she holed it.
“I form of felt disregarded as a result of Charley hit it to love 15 ft for eagle; Rose hit it to love two ft; and I had missed the inexperienced,” Ko stated. “I hit it precisely the best way that I used to be envisioning. As quickly because it got here off the membership face and landed, Charley stated, ‘Good shot.’ And 5 seconds later it went within the gap. I really feel like these are an additional bonus.”
Gaby Lopez and Maria Fassi, who represented Mexico within the Olympics, every shot 67 and had been amongst these at 9-under 135. Nordqvist was within the group one other shot behind.
