Lydia Ko takes charge in Gainbridge LPGA as Aditi Ashok remains inside top 20

30 January 2022: On a day when scoring was at a premium, Lydia Ko tamed the windy, chilly conditions to shoot even par and open a two-stroke advantage at 11-under overall in the Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio. It is the 16th time in her LPGA Tour career that Ko has held or shared the 54-hole advantage. The most recent event: 2021 LOTTE Championship, which Ko went on to win. Five bogeys in seven holes cost Aditi Ashok dear, but the Indian remained inside the top twenty, heading into Sunday.

Aditi followed scores of 66 and 72 with a 76 in the third round. She started her day with a birdie at the first hole, but four consecutive bogeys from the fifth dropped her to three-over for the round. Another bogey on the eleventh dropped her to T17 at 2-under through 54 holes.

“Going into today, I knew that it was going to be pretty difficult,” Ko said. “Playing in the wind, any sort of temperature, makes it a lot tougher, and I knew that today was going to be a little bit more of a grind. You have to be more focused and move on when you do make mistakes.

“Finishing with pars the last couple holes, I got away with it there. To finish even par after a tough day, I think it was a solid day in the office.”

Her record-setting victory at Kapolei Golf Club nine months ago was Ko’s first title since the 2018 LPGA MEDIHEAL Championship. On Sunday in Boca Raton, she will look to collect a win in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 2015 and 2016 LPGA campaigns.

“It’s great to be back in contention. I played really solid and consistent, especially in the back half of my season last year,” said Ko, who earned 11 top-10 finishes across 20 starts in 2021. “When you keep putting yourself there, you feel like at one point it’s going to fall. I’m playing alongside the best female golfers and some of the best athletes in the world, so it’s not easy.”

Last week’s Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions winner Danielle Kang signed for a 2-over 74 on Saturday. She trails her good friend and third-round playing partner by two shots.

“Today was rough. I checked out a little bit for the back nine,” said Kang. “I did everything I can to stay in contention and give myself a chance tomorrow. It was tough out there. I missed a lot of putts. There was a lot of gusting [wind over] shots and I never missed so many putts by so far [a margin] in a while.”

Celine Boutier rounds out Sunday’s final grouping. Her 69 was one of two bogey-free rounds Saturday—the other coming from Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist (71)—which launched Boutier into outright third at -8. A win by Boutier would give her three LPGA Tour victories and make her the winningest French golfer in LPGA Tour history, passing Patricia Meunier-Lebouc and Anne-Marie Pall. The last title for the Frenchwoman came at the 2021 ShopRite LPGA Classic presented by Acer.

“I didn’t even realize I had gone bogey-free. I was honestly just focusing on one hole at a time, doing my best each hole,” Boutier said. “Moving up the leaderboard as much as I could was my goal for today.

“It’s different [feel] because ShopRite was only three rounds, and I came from pretty far behind. I knew I might have a chance coming into the last round, but I was trying to go as deep as I can. Conditions this week and especially this weekend are so hard that you can’t really go very deep. You have to play solid and make pars, make as few mistakes as you can, and hope that it’s enough.”

Charley Hull (71) and Yuka Saso (72) share fourth at 7-under. Delray Beach resident Lexi Thompson (73) jumped into a tie for 10th on -3, while Rolex Rankings No. 1 and defending Gainbridge LPGA champion Nelly Korda shot 4-over 76 to drop into a share of 23rd at even par. And Palm Beach County native Jaye Marie Green (78) is in a tie for 69th at +7.