Sei Young Kim didn’t have her best stuff on moving day at the CME Group Tour Championship and that’s pretty scary.
Kim three-putted the final hole at Tiburon, made bogey but still signed for a five-under par 67 and she stands at 13-under par with the solo lead heading into Sunday’s finale.
But the main obstacle for the world’s No. 2 is that the world’s No. 1 — Jin Young Ko — is just a shot behind. Ko, who played in the final threesome with Kim and Lexi Thompson, shot 69 and is alone in second at 12-under par, setting up a 1-2 showdown for the final 18.
Kim, the defending champion, will be crowned Rolex Player Of The Year if she can win on Sunday. She played a near perfect round, she was six-under through 13 holes and parred every hole in until her three-putt from the fringe at 18. Despite what looked like a great score, she hit a number of loose shots. But she managed to recover when she did. She made an incredible up-and-down at the par three 16th when she pulled her tee shot well left of the green into a waste area. She hit a lob wedge over a greenside bunker and stopped her ball four feet from the hole and converted the par putt.
It was that kind of day for Kim.
Ko was her usual steady self and will start the final round within a shot thanks to Kim’s closing bogey.
Georgia Hall’s 68 got her to 10-under, solo third and the only other player in double figures under par on a beautiful, sunny Florida day with just a hint of a breeze.
Three players shared the day’s low round — Charley Hull, Minjee Lee and Brooke Henderson all shot 66s and are three of the five players tied at nine-under par. Thompson is in there with them after a second straight 71. Once again, Lexi couldn’t get anything going. She did have four birdies but offset them with a trio of bogeys and simply couldn’t keep pace with Kim and Ko. Austin Ernst shot 69 to get into the nine-under group.
There’s a lot at stake in the final round. The winner will take home $1.1 million, largest winner’s purse in women’s golf. Player Of The Year is on the line and Kim has an outside shot to take the No. 1 spot in the world from Ko, she would have to win Sunday and have Ko finish solo 10th or worse. Ko has held the top spot for 73 weeks in a row and it is unlikely she’ll lose it on Sunday.
Kim is tied for the victories lead with Danielle Kang. Both have two wins this season. “Really good chance to chase everything,” Kim said after her round. “If I play well tomorrow, good chance.”
But first things first. She has to beat Jin Young Ko, who simply ended her day by saying:
“I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
You bet she is.
CME Tour Championship Scoreboard:
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