Ina Yoon extends lead to 5 at KPMG Women's PGA, Nelly Korda 6 back to start weekend
CHASKA, Minn. – After a record-tying 63 to open the KPMG Women’s PGA, South Korea’s Ina Yoon kept the pedal down on Friday, stretching her lead to five at Hazeltine National. The woman who was once banned for cheating on the KLPGA looks unflappable so far in the third major of the season.
Yoon shot 69 to get to 12 under par, giving her the largest 36-hole lead at the Women’s PGA since Cristie Kerr led by as many at the halfway point in 2010. Yoon leads the field in greens in regulation, hitting 86 percent, and ranks third in strokes gained putting. She also tops the field with 14 birdies.
“This is actually my first time being lead going into the weekend,” said a relaxed-looking Yoon, who was the last player on the range Friday night. “It’s actually really nice experience for me.”
Countrywoman A Lim Kim, a fellow major winner and Yoon’s partner at the recent Dow Championship, holds a share of second with Brooke Henderson, Hea Ran Ryu and Nasa Hataoka.
The KPMG marks Ryu’s first appearance on the LPGA since mid-May, when she finished runner-up at the Kroger Queen City in Ohio. Ryu said she had a minor surgery in South Korea but didn’t want to divulge details.
Henderson, who won this championship 10 years ago at Sahalee, birdied her last three holes. She’s still riding high after becoming an aunt on Thursday, getting the news not long before she teed off in the first round.
Nelly Korda, the hottest player in golf, trails by six going into moving day after a second-round 68 that included a mid-round tweak after missing a few shots left, joking with her caddie about how she would’ve killed for a left miss at Riv, where everythign was going right.
“It is hard to have a big lead going into the weekend,” said Korda. “I was there at Chevron and you do feel a little bit more pressure, like everyone is hunting you down. I’m just going to focus on, as boring as it is, one shot at a time and see where that takes me.”
This marks the first time in two years that both Korda and Henderson are in the top 10 at the end of a major championship round since the 2024 Chevron.
World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul sits in a share of 11th, eight back.
A total of 70 players made the cut, which fell at 1 over. Defending champion Minjee Lee, Charley Hull and Hannah Green, who won at Hazeltine in 2019, were among those who missed the cut by one.
The scoring average of 73.098 is the third-lowest at the KPMG relative to par through 36 holes over the last 35 years, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Ina Yoon extends lead to 5 at KPMG Women’s PGA, Nelly Korda 6 back to start weekend
