Lydia Ko surges to 4-shot Taiwan lead, has sights set on No. 1 ranking
Another Sunday, another chance for Lydia Ko to take over as the No. 1 player in women’s golf.
With a third-round, 5-under 67 at Miramar Golf & Country Club, Ko took a four-shot lead entering the final round of the Fubon LPGA Taiwan Championship. Eun-Hee Ji, 2009 U.S. Women’s Open champion, is alone in second place at 9-under 207, with Charley Hull alone in third, another shot back of Ko.
Ko went out in even-par 36, opening with two birdies in the first three holes before a double-bogey 6 on the fifth hole. She caught fire on the second nine. After making a par at the 10th, Ko ripped off four birdies in five holes to take the lead. A birdie at the par-5 last locked up the four-shot edge.
A week ago in Korea, the 18-year-old had the 54-hole lead in the LPGA KEG HanaBank Championship, needing a win to take the top spot in the Rolex Rankings. However, she was caught and passed by eventual winner Lexi Thompson, who denied Ko the chance to take the top spot from Inbee Park. This week, Ko does not have to win to get to No. 1, but she would assume it with a win or solo runner-up finish. Park isn’t playing in this week’s event, instead competing on the Korean LPGA Tour in its KB Financial Star Championship, where she is tied for fourth after three rounds.
Though Ko has a sizable lead in search of a fifth LPGA win on the year, the Kiwi knows she cannot assume a victory lap on Sunday.
”It’s hard to say, `Hey, I’ve got the trophy today,”’ Ko said. ”I’ve still got to play a lot of good golf tomorrow. There’s still 18 holes to go. … On this course, anything can happen. There’s some large numbers out there. I made a double myself.”
Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.
