South Koreans have won seven of the past 11 Opens, and even with world No. 1 Lydia Ko of New Zealand now very much back in contention after a 5-under 66 that left her three shots out of the lead, Park could challenge to become the latest surprise victor, following up 20-year-old In Gee Chun a year ago.
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The sophomore-to-be on the Kentucky women’s golf team finished at 21-over par after a hard second round at CordeValle in San Martin, Calif. If Henderson wins, she would replace Ko as the youngest LPGA player with two majors.
Ko has a one-shot lead over the 2009 victor, Eun Hee Ji, and Sung Hyun Park. Yang, who began the day three shots off the lead, bogeyed two of her first three holes before rebounding.
“I think I tried to stay patient and calm out there today”, said Ko.
She said: “Winning the Evian Championship gave me a lot of confidence to say, “Hey, I can play well at these Majors”.
Park then drove into a hazard on the par-5 18th for a one-shot penalty before saving par with a 15-foot putt to end her round in a tie with first-round leader Lee, who shot a 2-over 74. “I did that, so I knew it was going to be a good day”. Lee tied a U.S. Women’s Open record by shooting 8-under on Thursday. “But I just try and take deep breaths”.
That’s just ridiculous when you have to reach back to when Ulysses S. Grant was president of the United States and William Gladstone prime minister of the United Kingdom to find a comparison for Ko. “Why am I not able to control my hands?'” Ko said. She has only one other victory on the LPGA Tour in 10 seasons. “In majors sometimes you’re going to make those mistakes but there’s always the next hole”. Her best finish was a T12 at Lancaster Country Club a year ago.
While contending in a major is a mostly new experience for Park, Ko is an old hat at it.
Kim has missed the U.S. Open cut three of the past four times she’s participated (she didn’t play in 2014).
Lee, who also started at No. 10, had six birdies in a bogey-free round – four of them coming between Nos. She is only 19 years old but has a droll and wicked sense of humor, as demonstrated when asked about her routine on the eve of a crucial final round such as Sunday’s.
The players were not told of the penalty until they were in the middle of playing the final hole, after officials reviewed replays in the latest controversy at a USGA event after the delayed penalty called in the final round on eventual men’s U.S. Open victor Dustin Johnson last month. She gets back to what she’s doing, and she executes. She made another birdie at No. 13 before her strong closing hole. But a bogey on No. 17 dropped her back to 3-over and on the bubble. “If the conditions are easier, I have to be prepared to go low”. The Stanford product was 2-over on Friday and is 5-over for the tournament. “The way I played today under pressure, if I do that again tomorrow and minimize the mistakes I think I can get an under par round out and to finish this tournament in the red figures would be great”.
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Yang has two seconds and four top-5s in the past six Women’s Opens. “We are so proud of Anna for what she has accomplished over the last few weeks”, Kentucky women’s golf head coach Golda Johansson Borst said. She jumped from a tie for 20th to a tie for fourth.
