Park Joo-young, 34, is on the verge of her long-awaited first win.
Park shot a 4-under 68 in the second round of the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour’s Daebo Howdy Open ($10 million) on Tuesday at Seowon Valley Country Club (Par 72) in Paju, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
With an interim total of 5-under par 139, Park heads into the final round with a two-stroke lead over Kim Jae-hee.
Park, who married in December 2021 and gave birth to a son last year, has played in 278 tournaments on the KLPGA Tour with no wins. This will be her 279th tournament.
If Park holds the lead in the final round and wins, she will set a new KLPGA Tour record for most wins in a career.
The previous record was held by Seo Yeon-jeong, who won the KG Ladies Open on March 3 after 260 matches.
If Park’s younger sister, Park Hee-young, wins, it will be the first time a sister has been crowned a champion on the KLPGA Tour after winning six titles on the Ladies Professional Golf (LPGA) Tour.
Park had six birdies and two bogeys on the day.
“My shots and putts haven’t been great lately,” Park said. I’ve been practicing a lot, and I’m happy that it seems to be paying off. Playing with the support of my son and husband gave me more energy.”
“It was really hard to combine childcare and practice. Every day, after putting my son to bed, I would practice my putts at home for two to three hours. At 9 p.m., I would go to the driving range to practice my shots.”
However, because she had been looking forward to winning the title for so long, Park remained calm and unmotivated.
“I think I need to enjoy playing in the champion group a little more and not be so focused on the result. I’m going to play with the mindset of ‘if I win, it’s enough, if I don’t, it’s enough,’ because there’s no pressure because a bad shot or putt went well,” Park said. “I’m going to watch the fairway as much as I can like today, and I’m not going to be nervous and I’m going to make sure I play the way I need to play,” she vowed.
Kim Jae-hee was also looking for her first win.
Kim carded six birdies and two bogeys to shave four strokes off her total and head into the final round at 3-under par 141.메이저놀이터
Kim Ji-soo and Choi Ga-bin are tied for fourth at 2-under-par 142.
Rookie Yeon Seo Hwang, who jumped out to a surprise first-round lead with a five-stroke victory, dropped back to a tie for 13th at even-par 144.
Three-time winner Park Ji-young finished the second round in a tie for 17th place (1-over par 147), while Park Min-ji is in a tie for 33rd place (3-over par 146).
Lee Ye Won, who leads the money list and points for the tournament, and defending champion Song Ga Eun missed the cut.
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