GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan: Grace Kim broke away late Saturday afternoon at Blythefield Country Club, birdieing four of the final six holes to take a five-stroke lead into the final round of the Meijer LPGA Classic.
Tied for the second-round lead with Ally Ewing, Kim shot a 6-under 66 to get to 17-under 199. The 23-year-old Australian won in a playoff last year in Hawaii for her lone LPGA Tour title. She lost a large lead in April in Los Angeles in the JM Eagle LA Championship.
“Gving myself another chance to I guess do it again and actually get it done,” Kim said. “I know I’m going to try my best for tomorrow and everyone else will. This golf course calls for lot of birdies and there are a lot of good players out here. ”
Ewing followed her second-round 63 with a 71 to drop into a tie for second with Lexi Thompson, Anna Nordqvist, Allizen Corpuz and Narin An.
“It was a little bit of a scramble today,” Ewing said. “I made some really good putts to just kind of hang in early.”
Thompson, the 2015 winner who has said this will be her last year playing a full schedule, played the final six holes on the front nine in 7 under in a 65. She has gone more than five years without winning.
“Just kind of got into a groove,” Thompson said. “This is a golf course you know you have to come out and play aggressive and make lots of birdies. Just came out feeling very comfortable, made a few good swings, and rolled in some putts.”
Nordqvist also shot 65. Corpuz had a 68, and An shot 69.
Kim had three straight birdies on the front nine on Nos. 5-7, dropped a stroke on the par-5 10th, then made the late charge with birdies on on the par-3 13th, par-5 14th, par-4 16th and par-5 18th.
“Obviously, I finished pretty strong, so hopefully I can just keep that going,” Kim said. “Have a good night meal. Watched a movie yesterday. That’s probably helped a little bit as well. Maybe do that again tonight and see. Fresh for tomorrow.”
Lilia Vu, a former No. 1 player and double major winner last year, was tied for 14th at 9 under in her return from a back injury that sidelined her since the Ford Championship in late March. She shot 68.
Brooke Henderson, the Canadian who won the event in 2017 and 2019, shot a 73 to drop into a tie for 24th at 7 under. Defending champion Leona Maguire was tied for 57th at 3 under after a 72.
Top-ranked Nelly Korda left Friday after missing her second straight cut following a stretch of six victories in seven events. She won at Blythefield in 2021 at a tournament-record 25 under.
The major KPMG Women’s PGA Championship is next week at Sahalee outside Seattle.
Grace Kim shoots 66 to take 5-shot lead in Meijer LPGA Classic
https://arab.news/4dgjd
Grace Kim shoots 66 to take 5-shot lead in Meijer LPGA Classic
- Top-ranked Nelly Korda left Friday after missing her second straight cut following a stretch of six victories in seven events
Tiger Woods opens door to Masters return, US Ryder Cup captaincy
- Woods said Tuesday afternoon at the site of the Genesis Invitational at Rivera Country Club he wouldn’t rule out returning for the 2026 Masters in April
LOS ANGELES: Undaunted following a milestone birthday and a trio of recent major physical setbacks that have limited his tournament schedule to a trickle, Tiger Woods believes he has plenty of game left.
Woods said Tuesday afternoon at the site of the Genesis Invitational at Rivera Country Club he wouldn’t rule out returning for the 2026 Masters in April.
“I’m trying. Put it that way,” the 50-year-old Woods said. “The disc replacement has been one thing. It’s been a challenge to — I’ve had a fused back and now a disc replacement, so it’s challenging.
“And now, I entered a new decade, so that number is starting to sink in and has us thinking about the opportunity to be able to play in a cart. That’s something that, as I said, I won’t do out here on (in PGA Tour events) because I don’t believe in it. But on the Champions Tour, that’s certainly (an) opportunity.”
In reality, Woods might be too busy to play tournament golf these days.
As the chair of the new Future Competitions Committee, Woods is heavily involved in what will be a new-look PGA Tour as early as the 2027 season, with a full roll out aimed for 2028. He revealed on Tuesday he was asked about his interest in being the United States captain for the 2027 Ryder Cup.
“Yeah, they have asked me for my input on it, and I haven’t made my decision yet,” Woods said of the Ryder Cup showdown against Europe that is set to be played in Ireland. “I’m trying to figure out what we’re trying to do with our tour.
“That’s been driving me hours upon hours every day and trying to figure out if I can actually do our team, our Team USA and our players and everyone that’s going to be involved in the Ryder Cup, if I can do it justice with my time.”
This week, Woods’ main focus will be to welcome the field to the Genesis Invitational where he is the tournament host. While Riviera was the site of his first ever PGA Tour event, on a sponsor’s exemption at the Los Angeles Open in 1992 when he was 16, the Southern California native will not be playing this week.
But still could be on the course soon.
As for Augusta National, the 15-time major winner was asked if participating in the Masters was ruled out, Woods said “No.”
Future changes to the PGA Tour are not expected to move the Masters off its traditional spring window, but Woods said a myriad of other options are being considered. The plan essentially will create a shorter tournament calendar while still improving the product.
“Yeah, we’re going to get more top players playing and we’re going to make it more competitive,” Woods said. .”.. Having Brooks (Koepka) come back, having Patrick Reed play as well as he is and committed to coming back to the tour, having Scottie (Scheffler) as dominant as he has been, and to have Rory (McIlroy) complete the career grand slam, you have a lot of top players, but also you have a lot of youth that has come up.”
The current West Coast swing, which is the traditional start to the PGA Tour season, might cease to exist or be completely altered. Instead of starting the PGA Tour season in January, reports have indicated future seasons could start after the Super Bowl.
“Well, I think it’s trying to serve literally everyone, from the player side of it, from our media partners, from all of our title sponsors, from the local communities or even changing venues and going to bigger markets,” Woods said. “It’s what do we need to do from a competitive model to make our tour the best product it can possibly be each and every year and still have room for development. How do we do all of that at the same time?“
This week’s tournament in the Los Angeles area could remain in its February window or move toward the end of the season in August and be a playoff venue.
“It’s been a lot of moving parts, but it’s been in sync,” Woods said. “We’ve had a lot of information thrown our way, which has been great. Everyone is working collaboratively together.”
Woods could even be a part of that future schedule as a player. He still has physical limitations from the shattered right leg that happened during a single-car crash in 2021, followed by an Achilles injury and disc replacement surgery in his back this past October.
Given his physical ailments, playing on the Champions Tour, which allows players to use a golf cart, is under consideration. Woods turned 50 just over a month ago, making him eligible for the Champions Tour.
“I’ve had a fused back and now a disc replacement, so it’s challenging,” Woods said. “And I entered a new decade, so that number is starting to sink in and has us thinking about the opportunity to be able to play in a cart. That’s something that, as I said, I won’t do out here on this tour because I don’t believe in it. But on the Champions Tour, that’s certainly that opportunity.”
He had no timetable on when a Champions Tour debut might take place. Woods is more content with turning back the clock this week.
“For me, that’s part of the neat thing about being here at (Riviera), being able to go back in time as a kid,” Woods said.
