GOLF: Lydia Ko fires 60 for early lead at Ford Championship

LPGA Hall of Famer Lydia Ko came close to making history with a potential second round of 59 in LPGA history.

Ko birdied four of her final five holes to shoot a 12-under-par 60, setting the pace in the first round of the Ford Championship on Thursday at the Cattail Course of Whirlwind Golf Club in Chandler, Arizona.

The course, hosting an LPGA event for only the second time, proved generous not just to Ko. Her lead is slim, with South Korea's Hyo Joo Kim posting an 11-under 61 and Nelly Korda in third at 9-under 63.

"I think the number 59 did cross my mind by the time I holed my birdie putt on 6 (her 15th hole), but it wasn't like I felt a lot of pressure to break 60," said the New Zealand star. "It was just more like, 'Oh, it's really cool to be in this position.' I think that's my career-low score."

Ko started strong, birdieing each of her first four holes and rolling in 12 without a bogey. Had she birdied the par-5 seventh hole instead of settling for par, she would have become the second woman in tour history to break 60. Annika Sorenstam of Sweden recorded the LPGA’s first 59 in March 2001 at a tournament roughly 30 miles from Whirlwind Golf Club.

"Honestly, the thought came very late in my round, and I had to birdie the rest coming in at that point," Ko added. "So it felt like an added bonus if it happened. If not, it’s fine. Still a really good round. Annika is the only one who has shot 59, so any record that matches hers would be pretty incredible."

Kim, who also began on the back nine, surged up the leaderboard with a birdie-eagle-birdie finish. The defending champion is aiming for back-to-back wins after claiming last week’s Fortinet Founders Cup.

"I tried playing like last year at the course, but the course conditions are quite different, so I'm just trying my best," Kim said. "My short game went well, so I had a low score."

Korda, the 2024 Ford Championship winner, played a bogey-free round Thursday with seven birdies and an eagle on the par-4 18th. The World No. 2 credited careful course management.

"Just try to place myself in the right spots," Korda said. "Sometimes these fairways get baked out, same with the greens. So closer doesn’t always mean it’s good, because you can end up with a tricky pitch shot where you can’t get much spin. You try to lay back a little bit."

Korda is chasing her second win of the season, while tied for fourth at 8-under 64 are Frida Kinhult of Sweden and Weiwei Zhang of China.

-Field Level Media/Reuters