By: Max Bechtoldt
Though the lead has consistently belonged to major champion A Lim Kim in the 2024 Lotte Championship, it wasn’t done in the easiest of ways Friday.
Kim had one of the more roller coaster rounds on the LPGA Tour this season, shooting a -5 67 with six birdies, three bogeys and an ace. She hit just seven fairways, but made up for it on approach, hitting 14 greens. Her driving distance was also up, averaging 291 yards off the green and having 27 putts.
Kim has just one LPGA Tour victory, winning the COVID-delayed 2020 U.S. Women’s Open in December of that year.
Her closest competitor, Nataliya Guseva, is looking to become the first player from Russia to win an LPGA Tour event. Guseva has needed just 81 putts over the first three days to place her at -13 for the tournament, one back of the lead.
Three strokes back is American Ryann O’Toole, who nearly won early this year in Palos Verdes, falling in a playoff to Nelly Korda. She is seeking her second LPGA Tour victory of her career. O’Toole has missed only 10 fairways this week so far.
Lurking four strokes back is Jin Young Ko, who is trying to break a long winless drought for her standards. Since 2017, Ko has won at least one LPGA Tour event every season. With only three tournaments remaining in 2024, that streak, the longest of its kind, is in serious jeopardy.
