South Korea’s Mi Jung Hur followed her record-setting performance on Friday with a 6-under 67 to take a one-shot lead over Canada’s Brooke Henderson heading into the final round at the Reignwood LPGA Classic.
Hur was bogey-free on Saturday after setting the tournament record with a 63 on Friday. Five of her birdies dropped after the turn as she continued her stellar play on the back nine - collectively, Hur is 14-under on the back nine this week.
Hur said that she will not be concerned with the scores of other players on Sunday. Instead, she will focus on reaching her own goal - beating her career-best finish of 21-under par in her last win at the 2014 Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic.
“I think nobody knows about the winning score for this year, so I just want to set my goal and try to get it,” said Hur. “After that I can think about it.”
With a win this week, Hur would become the sixth South Korean player to win on the LPGA Tour in 2016, and the second in a row after In Gee Chun’s victory at the Evian Championship. South Korea leads the LPGA in wins by country with seven this season.
Henderson (-19) will play alongside Hur for a second consecutive day, with defending champion Mirim Lee (-17) rounding out the final group. The Canadian is one of six players with multiple wins this year and will be gunning for her third win of the season on Sunday.
Henderson missed a couple of opportunities on the final two holes to stay tied with Hur, as she lipped out a short birdie putt on the par-3 17th hole and found the greenside bunker with her second shot on the 18th. The World No. 4 player will be itching to bounce back early on Sunday.
“I think when you finish like that it does give you a little bit more excitement looking forward to tomorrow,” Henderson said. “Especially being the final round. Really looking forward to it.”
Two Chinese players, Shanshan Feng (-17) and Simin Feng (-12) will be joined by South Korea’s In-Kyung Kim (-17) in the group following the leaders.
2016 WINS LEADERS
5 - Ariya Jutanugarn
4 - Lydia Ko
2 - 4 players tied (Brooke Henderson, Ha Na Jang, Sei Young Kim, Haru Nomura)
1 - 7 players tied
RECORDS IN REACH
Mi Jung Hur’s 54-hole total of -20 is the lowest 54-hole score of any tournament in 2016. With the direction scores have been trending at Reignwood Pine Valley Golf Club, there could be a few more scoring records broken by the time play ends on Sunday.
Reignwood LPGA Classic Scoring Record - 26-under, Shanshan Feng, 2013
Lowest Winning Score on a Par 73 Layout in 2016 - 18-under, Hyo Joo Kim, Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic
Lowest Winning Score on Tour in 2016, Overall - 27-under, Sei Young Kim, JTBC Founders Cup (Par 72)
RED BULL FINAL FIVE CHALLENGE
The Red Bull Final Five Challenge returns at the Reignwood LPGA Classic this year. The 5-hole challenge awards the player with the lowest cumulative score in relation to par for tournament holes 14-18 throughout the week.
Mi Jung Hur and Mirim Lee are currently tied for the lead in the challenge at 9-under par on holes 14-18 through Saturday.
The winner of the challenge will receive $50,000 USD at the conclusion of the tournament. Players need to finish all 4 rounds, 72 holes (or the official number of rounds completed in this year’s Reignwood LPGA Classic if shortened due to weather) to be eligible.
QUOTABLE
“They both are my favorite player on the tour, so I just want to enjoy the game with them. Actually it’s hard to enjoy with them. Try to enjoy, yeah, that game with them.”
- Mi Jung Hur on playing with Brooke Henderson (World No. 4) and Shanshan Feng (World No. 14) on Saturday
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