Wei-Ling Hsu was well down the leaderboard when she teed off at 8:12 a.m. on Friday. About four hours later, her name was among the leaders after she made a run at the Lotte Championship’s 18-hole scoring record.
Hsu, who started the day at 4 under and tied for 52nd, shot a 30 on her front nine, stringing together four birdies going into the turn. She cooled slightly on the back before birdies on Nos. 14 and 15. On the par-5 17th hole, she fired a 4-wood from the fairway to the back of the green and rolled in a 20-foot eagle putt to get to 10 under, needing a par on No. 18 to become the third player in Lotte history to record a 62.
But she found bunkers off the tee and on her approach. After chipping onto the green, her uphill par putt stopped a roll short of the cup for a bogey and a 9-under 63, still the best round of her career.
“I definitely have something that I can improve, but, hey, 9 under, you don’t have that score every day,” said Hsu, who went into the clubhouse at 13 under as the leaders were preparing to start their rounds.
“There is 100 girls that can shoot really low on this course. I definitely want to shoot like 5 or 6 under. I didn’t really expect nine.”
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A few hours later, Nelly Korda matched Hsu’s 63. Korda heads into today’s final round in second place, a stroke behind Lydia Ko, who shot a 63 on Thursday.
Lizette Salas set the single-round record of 62 in the final round in 2013 to force a playoff with eventual champion Suzann Pettersen. Cristie Kerr matched the mark in the third round on the way to her 2017 victory.
Strom starts strong
Linnea Strom got off to a torrid start with four birdies and an eagle on the front nine to climb into contention for a while at 14 under. But one hole changed that, as she carded a double-bogey 6 on No. 10.
“When we made the turn I just tried to start over and not think about the front nine. I was a little bit confused with the wind on 10 so got in the bunker,” she said. “But after that I’m pretty happy that I just continued to stay in the present and hang in there. Didn’t really hole many putts on the back nine, but finished with two birdies, so that was nice.”
Strom heads into today’s final round at 13 under, tied for ninth.
Climbing the charts
Xiyu Lin barely made the cut, but in the spirit of moving day elevated her standing with a bogey-free 64 on Friday, putting her at 11 under for the tournament.
But if it were up to her parents in China, Lin might not have been here, or on the LPGA Tour at all this season. Last May, because of COVID-19, she had to decide to return to her homeland or remain in the United States.
“My parents really wanted me to go back because I’m by myself here,” she said. “But then I just think, I’m a golfer and this is the career, and if I have the chance I should take the chance.”
3-peat bid stalls
Two-time defending champion Brooke Henderson shot her third straight round of 4-under 68 and has just two bogeys in a remarkably consistent tournament so far. Yet she’ll start the final round tied for 16th at 12 under as most of the leaders continued to go low.
Henderson found all 14 fairways for the second time this week and has hit 52 of 54 greens in regulation. Once on the greens, she’s needed 32 putts in all three rounds.
