2015 ANA Inspiration Round 2 News and Notes

Sei Young Kim smoked a beautiful high-arching hybrid into the peninsula-protected par-5 18th green at Mission Hills Country Club to five feet and rolled the putt in for eagle to vault to the top of the leaderboard at 7-under-par Friday at the ANA Inspiration. Kim’s 7-under-par 65 is the round of the tournament thus far by two shots and was seven shots better than her first-round 72. She leads American and first-round leader Morgan Pressel (72) by two shots.

“I feel really great because I was 7-under today,” Kim said. “I really hit the ball good and putting really good, everything really good. I’m very happy.”

As for how the 22-year-old LPGA rookie plans to stay atop the leaderboard come Sunday, she turned to a famous company slogan.

“Just do it,” Kim said. “Just do it!”

Kim’s round Friday was a ball-striking masterpiece on a day she hit 17 of 18 greens. She hit it to within 15 feet on each of her four birdies on the front nine and was out in 4-under 32. She had short-range birdies on Nos. 11 and 15 with her only blemish coming on No. 16, where she hit her tee shot in the rough and hit her approach way to the back of the green for a three putt. But she saved her best for last, making eagle on the last to take the 36-hole lead.

Only once before has Kim held the 36-hole lead, the 2015 Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic, which she ended up closing out for her first LPGA win in a three-player playoff. She’s one of those players that doesn’t seem to be bothered by any pressure and won four of her five KLPGA Tour victories in playoffs.

This is her third appearance in an LPGA major and her best finish at one is 46th at the U.S. Women’s Open last year. She tied for 61st at this event a year ago.

Pressel, the 2007 champ, had three birdies and three bogeys in her even-par round. Three players are in a tie for third at 4-under par including the 2009 winner Brittany Lincicome, Jenny Shin of South Korea and Scotland’s Catriona Matthew.

End to the Streak

Lydia Ko’s record-tying streak of 29 consecutive sub-par rounds came to a close Friday, ending in a tie with Annika Sorenstam’s record of 29 after Ko shot a 1-over-par 73. Ko, the 17-year old world No. 1, was disappointed for the streak to end but won’t be upset to see the hype around it go.

“I mean, it was pretty awesome that I was near Annika’s record last week and even yesterday, and then I tied it,” Ko said. “It was so cool that I’m tying with someone amazing and as great as her. I was like, man, I would love to reach 30 in a way. But as I said before, I’m relieved that this question is not going to be asked, but I think 29 – I wasn’t counting and 29 under-par rounds is pretty good in my book.”

Ko headed to the 17th hole at even par for the day with a solid chance to keep the streak rolling after hitting her approach to 10 feet on the par-3 17th with a hybrid. But the putt just slid by the hole. All eyes were on her as she approached the par-5 18th tee with a chance to make a birdie to continue the streak. She missed her drive just to the right, though, off the tee, leaving it in the rough. She couldn’t go for the green as a result and got a bit aggressive with her 6-iron layup and dunked it in the water in front of the green. Ko was so shocked the layup went in the water that she asked a volunteer when she got up to the pond where her ball was.

“It was like 160 something to the end of the fairway, and then there was like 20 yards of rough, so I’d say it was 190 approximately,” Ko said. “I just hit a three-quarter 6 iron, and I would have never guessed that I was going to hit a 6-iron 190, not even if I was Lexi. Yeah, so obviously that was the wrong club at the end of the day, but I thought it was 6-iron even if it flew out of there, it would have at least stopped.”

Instead, that unexpected flyer caromed into the drink and stopped her streak.

“I applaud Lydia and her play over the last few months,” Sorenstam said. “I am impressed with the composure she shows at such a young age and I think we’ll be hearing a lot about her in the years to come.”

With the record complete, Ko can now focus on chasing down the leaders. She’s seven shots back heading into the weekend at even par, but it hasn’t been for a lack of birdies. Ko’s nine birdies through two days are just one shy of the amount of leader, Sei Young Kim, but Ko’s struggled with her driver and made more bogeys through two rounds – nine – than she made through the first two rounds in the three prior events combined.

“I just wasn’t hitting fairways, and then it just kind of becomes no fun,” Ko said. “It’s fun because you’re trying to hit hook shots and low shots out of the trees. In that way it’s fun, but no, I just really couldn’t get my driver going, and when you’re in that kind of position, it’s not easy around this course.”

Ko typically hits 82 percent of fairways – good for 28th on Tour – but she only hit 6 of 14 fairways Friday. Therefore, it’s not a surprise that Ko shot her first over-par round since November 15th, 2014 – the third round of the 2014 Lorena Ochoa Invitational.

Cheers to the Weekend

The cut this week fell at 73 players at 3-over par 147. Notables to miss the cut: Jessica Korda (+5), Lizette Salas (+6), Beatriz Recari (+6), Yani Tseng (+8).

Let's Go Low

Sei Young Kim’s round of 65 on Friday was one of the best rounds recorded in the past five years at this event. Since 2010, only four other players have shot 65 or better on the Dinah Shore Tournament Course. Here are the four other players:

Numbers to Know

1 - # of amateurs to make the cut – Only Haley Moore made it. Moore is the youngest player in the field at 16 years old and earned a spot in the field on Monday at the ANA Inspiration Junio Challenge

3 – This is Sei Young Kim’s third appearance in an LPGA major championship.

4 – Catriona Matthew was 4-under-par after two rounds a year ago here as well.

7 – 7-under also led here a year ago after two rounds (Lexi Thompson & Se Ri Pak).

9 – Lydia Ko’s 9 bogeys through the first two rounds this week is more than her first two rounds in her last three events combined.

46 – Sei Young Kim’s best finish in a major before this week.

64 – Lexi Thompson shot a second round 64 here a year ago in her win.

29 - Players under par through 36 holes.

Free it Up

Morgan Pressel wasn’t particularly pleased with her even-par 72 Friday, but she’s certainly OK with only being two shots back of the lead at 5-under heading into the weekend.

“I’ll be close to the lead,” Pressel said. “I give myself a chance for the weekend, and that’s all these two days really that I can do.”

Pressel’s second round got off to a rookie start immediately, snapping her drive off the first tee into the left woods. She punched out and proceeded to hit her third to just a few feet to save par. It was that type of day throughout for Pressel in a three birdie, three bogey performance as she looks for her second win at this tournament.

“It was a little sloppy all around,” Pressel said. “My swing wasn’t quite as sharp as it was yesterday, and I kind of made some sloppy bogeys and some really good pars, so it was kind of backwards.”

She did feel like it got better, though, late in the round. It’s going to be a process for Pressel going forward. She was without an instructor for the first time since she was eight for the last eight months. She wanted to gain some feel and understand her golf swing better and not quite be as technical. That’s helped after she decided to go back to her instructor because now she can just focus on her one swing thought.

“Kind of being able to free it up on the golf course,” Pressel said, “but still when I hit a poor shot know why, why did I do that and how can I correct going forward. Kind of golf course self correction I think was a big thing that was helpful in just getting out there and trying to do it on my own.”

World No. 3 Stacy Lewis was an amateur paired with Pressel on the final day in 2007 when Pressel won here, and Lewis said she’s seen Pressel’s game turn for the better in recent weeks.

“She was just kind of the next teen sensation,” Lewis said. “I remember that year because it played so hard, and she just hung around and she hung around, and that’s who Morgan is. She’s a grinder. She’s not going to go out there and wow you with anything, but she’s just going to keep hanging around.”

Waiting For A Sweet Return

Brittany Lincicome has been waiting for the LPGA’s return to the desert since the start of the 2015 season and said that her game hasn’t matched up well to many courses on the schedule to open up the year. Lincicome has only one top-10 finish in six starts this year, a fourth place in the Bahamas.

“Some of the golf courses that we’ve had so far just don’t really fit my game, unfortunately, so it’s kind of like Missy and I were waiting and waiting for the next couple events to come,” said Lincicome.

“Just kind of getting the practice and momentum and just trying to keep it together out there and not fall apart and keeping the nerves under control, just kind of getting ready for a golf course like this one that kind of fits my game a little bit better,” she added. “It’s unfortunate that I have to wait so long into the year for something that kind of fit my game, but yeah, it’s nice to be here, and obviously playing well, it’s really fun.”

Lincicome only missed three fairways on Friday in her round of 68 which bumped her up the leaderboard from T26 to T3. The Florida native, who won her first and only major here in 2009, said that she felt like she even left a few birdies out on the course on Friday.

“Yeah, for sure. I missed like two five-footers and one 10-footer for sure that could have gone in. But yeah, felt like I was hitting it really well,” said Lincicome. “I knew exactly where the ball was going all day, which obviously on this golf course the rough is so thick, if you hit it in the rough, you’re pretty much dead, so that’s nice at least driving it well, which is really fun.”

Quotable

“Her feel wasn’t so hot yesterday. She wasn’t feeling it, which is fine. That happens. And then today she came out and just found the feel and just went with it and played within herself and made it look easy.” – Sei Young Kim’s caddie, Paul Fusco, on his player’s turnaround on Friday

Airtimes This Week

The ANA Inspiration will have four hours of live coverage on each day of the weekend:

April 4 from 5:00pm - 9:00pmET

April 5 from 5:00pm - 9:00pmET