LPGA Hall of Famer Lydia Ko came extremely close to a mammoth achievement: the second round of 59 in LPGA history.
Ko birdied four of her last five holes to shoot a 12-under-par 60 and set the pace in the first round of the Ford Championship on Thursday in Chandler, Ariz.
The Cattail Course at Whirlwind Golf Club, hosting an LPGA event for the second time, was kind to more than just Ko. Her lead is just a single shot as South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim posted an 11-under 61 and Nelly Korda is right behind in third place at 9-under 63.
“I think the number 59 did cross my mind by the time I holed my birdie putt on 6 (her 15th hole), but it wasn’t like … I had a lot of pressure to like break 60,” the New Zealand star said. “It was just more like, ‘Oh, it’s really cool to be in this position.’ I think that’s my career low score.”
Ko birdied each of her first four holes and rolled in 12 without a bogey.
Had she birdied the par-5 seventh hole, instead of settling for par, she’d be the second woman in tour history to break 60. Annika Sorenstam of Sweden famously had the LPGA’s first 59 in March 2001 in a now-defunct tournament in Phoenix — a mere 30 miles away from Whirlwind Golf Club.
“Honestly the thought came very late in my round and I had to birdie the rest coming in at that point, so … I felt like it was an added bonus if it did happen,” Ko said. “If it didn’t, it’s fine. Still a really good round.
“Annika is the only one that has shot 59, so any record that matches Annika’s record is going to be pretty incredible.”
Kim, who like Ko started on the back nine, shot up the leaderboard late in her round by finishing birdie-eagle-birdie.
Not only is Kim trying to win back-to-back tournaments following last week’s Fortinet Founders Cup, she is also the defending champion and clearly comfortable at Whirlwind Golf Club.
“I tried playing like last year at the course, but the course conditions are quite different, so I’m just trying my best,” she said. “My short game went well, so I had a low score.”
Korda won the Ford Championship when it was introduced in 2024, before it was moved to Whirlwind. On Thursday, the World No. 2 skated through the round bogey-free with seven birdies in addition to an eagle at the par-4 18th.
“Just try to place myself in the right spots,” Korda said of her approach. “Sometimes these fairways get baked out. Same with the greens.
“So closer doesn’t always mean that it’s good, just because then you have a tricky pitch shot in where you can’t get too much spin on it and get it to stop, so you try to lay back a little bit.”
Korda is vying for her second win of the young season.
Tied for fourth at 8-under 64 are Frida Kinhult of Sweden and Weiwei Zhang of China.
