Ko shares lead at South Korea LPGA event

Lydia Ko and Sung Hyun Park share the lead after three rounds at the South Korea LPGA event, with Australia's Minjee Lee tied for 15th.

New Zealand golfer Lydia Ko

Lydia Ko (pic) and Sung Hyun Park share the lead after three rounds of the South Korean LPGA event. (AAP)

Lydia Ko and Sung Hyun Park rebounded to top the crowded leaderboard at the LPGA Championship event in South Korea on Saturday.

In position to take the top spot in the world, the second-ranked Ko overcame a double bogey with two late birdies in a three-under 69.

Park bounced back from a second-round 74 with a 67 to match Ko at 13-under on Sky 72's Ocean Course.

"You might not even get one day out of the 365 days in a year where you hit it perfect," Ko said.

"I always say I love golf, because there is no perfect."

New Zealand's Ko, who was born in South Korea, made the double bogey on the par-four 14th, driving left into the water and missing a four-foot putt.

The 18-year-old rallied, driving the short par-four 15th to set up a two-putt birdie and make a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-three 17th.

"There's still a long day ahead of me," Ko said. "But if I am holding the trophy at the end, it will be very special. To win at your birthplace, it's hard to do. To be able to win in front of the Korean fans and my family and relatives who have flown over from Jeju Island, I think it would be a very special moment."

Park birdied three of the last four holes, also driving the 15th, holing a 20-footer on 17 and chipping to two feet on the par-five 18th. Making her first career LPGA Tour start, the 22-year-old South Korean player opened with a course-record 62. She would earn an LPGA Tour card with a victory.

"Actually, I had this conversation with my mom and we were just talking about it," Park said. "I told her, 'If I should win this championship, I still don't think I'm ready for the LPGA Tour.' And even if I don't win tomorrow, I think I would be quite satisfied with the results of the championship so far."

Ranked 54th, Park won the Korea LPGA's Se Ri Pak Invitational two weeks ago for her third victory of the season. She won the Korea Women's Open in June.

The best placed Australian is Minjee Lee who has a share of 15th following a third-round of 72.


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Source: AAP



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