18 March, 2018: Inbee Park took charge of the leaderboard in the Founders Cup with a timely 62 on Saturday. Aditi Ashok is lying in T50 after reaching Sunday at 4-under through 54 holes.
Inbee Park was on 59 watch early on Saturday when she started birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie-
While she cooled off a bit with two birdies over her next 12 holes, she closed with a 15-foot birdie on 18 to turn in a season-best 9-under 63 and take the lead at 14-under 202. It’s her best round on the LPGA since the 2014 Fubon LPGA Taiwan Championship, when she posted a 62.
The highlight of the round was the eagle on three sandwiched in between the flurry of early birdies. She holed out from 98 yards with a 50-degree wedge.
“I got off to a great start, I was pretty much making everything I was looking at,” said Park, the 18-time LPGA winner. “I cooled off on the back and it was pretty much boring golf, but it was nice to finish with a birdie.”
WORLD GOLF HALL OF FAMER IN CONTENTION
Laura Davies did something on Saturday at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup that she hasn’t done in 13 years. She turned in a bogey-free 9-under 63 to move from a tie for 39th to the top of the leaderboard before Inbee Park took the lead later in the day.
“I hit a lot of fairways and that gives you a chance to get relatively close to the hole,” said Davies, who changed to the claw grip with the putter in Arkansas last year. “I haven’t been holing the putts, but today I did. The no bogeys part for me is the biggest key because that is what has been letting me down.”
Davies made seven birdies and an eagle and had a stretch of five birdies in six holes to close her front nine.
SURPRISE SUCCESS FOR URIBE AT WILDFIRE
Take a look at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup record books and you won’t see much of Mariajo Uribe. The 28-year-old from Colombia has teed it up at Wildfire Golf Club seven times, but this week marks just the second time she has made the cut, joining 2015. That year, she entered the final round in 53nd and ultimately tied for 71st.
“My caddie (Andy Techmeier) lives here, so we practiced a lot the advance week,” said Uribe. “My putting is going well, and that’s all that matters on this golf course.”
The last two times Uribe played in the final group on Sunday, she lost to megawatt stars Suzann Pettersen (2015 Manulife LPGA Classic) and Brooke Henderson (2016 Cambia Portland Classic). Her playing partner tomorrow in Phoenix? No pressure here – it’s the legendary Inbee Park, whom Uribe trails by one stroke.
“I’ve handled the pressure well before,” said Uribe, who tees off with Park at 2:05 p.m. “I’ve maybe changed my strategy on the last couple holes to try to win. That’s something I’m not thinking about tomorrow. Just stop looking at the leaderboard and play my game and we’ll see if it’s enough.”
If Inbee Park wins, she would move into a tie for 28th on the LPGA’s all-time wins list with 19, tying Sandra Palmer
Park would have captured at least one victory in six of the last seven seasons; she did not win a tournament in 2016, but won the Gold medal at the Rio Olympics
If Mariajo Uribe wins, she would be the second Rolex First-Time Winner this season, joining 2018 rookie Jin Young Ko (ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open); in 2017, there were only two Rolex First-Time Winners all season (Danielle Kang and Sung Hyun Park)
Uribe would be just the second player from Colombia to win on the LPGA Tour; Marisa Baena won the 2005 HSBC Women’s World Match Play
If Laura Davies wins, it would be 16 years, 9 months and 8 days since her last victory, which came at the 2001 Wegmans Rochester Invitational on June 10, 2001; the longest time between wins in LPGA history currently belongs to Dale Eggeling, who had 14 years, 11 months and 4 days between her wins at the 1980 Boston Five Classic and the 1995 Oldsmobile Classic
At age 54, Davies would be the oldest LPGA winner in history; Beth Daniel won the 2003 BMO Financial Group Canadian Women’s Open at 46 years, 8 months and 29 days of age
