Midway through the second round of the 2019 ANA Inspiration, seven-time LPGA Tour winner In-Kyung Kim leads the field at -8. Kim carded a 7-under 65 on Friday, a round that included eight birdies and one bogey. Her final birdie at No. 18 pulled her to the top of the leaderboard. The 30-year-old from the Republic of Korea, who now makes her home in suburban Dallas, looks to erase the memory of her runner-up finish at the 2012 championship. With a one-stroke lead, she missed a 1-foot putt on the 72nd hole to make bogey and fall into a playoff with Sun Young Yoo. Yoo eventually took the title with a birdie on the first playoff hole. Kim has since captured a major win at the 2017 AIG Women’s British Open, a season that saw her win three times on the LPGA Tour.
Australian Katherine Kirk sits in second, three strokes behind Kim at -5. Kirk, who now lives in Wichita, Kan., birdied six of her first 11 holes and stepped to the 17th tee in a tie for the lead with Kim. But consecutive bogeys over the closing two holes, combined with Kim’s birdie at No. 18, dropped Kirk to solo second. First-round leader Ally McDonald followed her 68 with an even-par round on Friday and is in third at -4.
Rolex Rankings No. 25 In-Kyung Kim (71-65)
- Kim’s second-round 65 is her career-best round at the ANA Inspiration; her previous best was a 67 in the second round in 2011, when she finished T10
- Her 65 is tied for the third-lowest round of her LPGA career; she has shot two 63s and numerous 64s and 65s
- Her 36-hole 136 is her career-best 36-hole score at the ANA Inspiration; her previous best was a 140 in 2012, when she finished second in a playoff
- She hit 11 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens, with 25 putts
- Kim is in her 13th season on the LPGA Tour; she has seven career victories, including a major win at the 2017 AIG Women’s British Open
- This is Kim’s third event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is T19 at last week’s Kia Classic
- She is competing in her 12th ANA Inspiration; she was runner-up in a playoff with Sun Young Yoo in 2012, after she missed a 1-foot putt on the final hole that would have won the championship
- Kim is a two-time member of Team Korea at the UL International Crown
- In 2015, she won the Kia Community Assist Award for her charitable efforts with the Special Olympics, where she is a Global Ambassador for Golf; she donated her entire winner’s check from the 2010 Lorena Ochoa Invitational to charity, half to the Lorena Ochoa Foundation and half to the Special Olympics
Rolex Rankings No. 76 Katherine Kirk (71-68)
- Kirk’s second-round 68 is her career-best round at the ANA Inspiration and is just her fourth rounds in the 60s on the Dinah Shore Course; her previous best was 69, which she has shot here three times, most recently in the first and third rounds in 2012
- She hit eight of 14 fairways and 12 of 18 greens, with 26 putts
- Kirk is in her 16th season on the LPGA Tour; she has three career victories, most recently at the 2017 Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic
- This is Kirk’s seventh event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is T5 at the ISPS Handa Vic Open and she has two other top-20 finishes
- She is competing in her 12th ANA Inspiration; her best finish is a tie for eighth in 2009
- Kim is a two-time member of Team Australia at the UL International Crown
- Kirk is a 2003 graduate of Pepperdine University with a degree in Sports Administration; she was the 2003 NCAA College Player of the Year and received the 2003 Dinah Shore Award, which is given to a female collegiate golfer who excels in golf, academics, leadership skills and community service
- In this week’s field, Stacy Lewis (2007) and Amy Olson (2012) have also received the Dinah Shore Award
- At age 37, Kirk would be the third oldest winner of the ANA Inspiration, following Betsy King (41, 1997) and Patty Sheehan (39, 1996)
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