Teen bids to become the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history


COQUITLAM, British Columbia (AP) ― Lydia Ko took a one-stroke lead Saturday in the Canadian Women’s Open in her bid to become the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history, shooting an even-par 72.

The 15-year-old South Korean-born New Zealander had an 8-under 208 total at The Vancouver Golf Club.

“It’s good to stay at the top of the leaderboard, but my first goal was to make the cut and hopefully top 15 or something,” Ko said. “But to be up there is just an honor, especially playing against the world’s best. Fifteen year olds don’t lead at an LPGA event all the time. Like I said, I’m very surprised. But I’ve been playing really good golf and I’ve been really confident with my game.”

Also trying to become the fifth amateur winner and first since JoAnne Carner in the 1969 Burdine’s Invitational, Ko won the U.S. Women’s Amateur two weeks ago. In January, she won the New South Wales Open in Australia at 14 to become the youngest player to win a professional tour event.

Lexi Thompson is the youngest LPGA Tour winner, taking the Navistar LPGA Classic last September at 16.

Ko bogeyed the par-4 18th, making a 5-foot putt after her 4-foot par try lipped out. She finished the round with three birdies and three bogeys.

“Today I tried to have more fun, but my score wasn’t as good,” Ko said. “I mean, 72 is better than 73 or any other score, so I’m pretty happy.

“Tomorrow, I’m just going to try my best. I’ve got to play my own game. I can’t concentrate on what the other players are doing. If they shoot 66 and I shoot 68 and I lose, I can’t control what they do.”

Chella Choi, tied for the second-round lead with Ko, had a 73 to drop into a tie for second with Stacy Lewis, Park In-bee and Shin Ji-yai. Lewis, a two-time winner this year, had a 66, Shin shot 69 and Park 70.

Lewis began the round seven strokes behind Ko and Choi.

“It’s the kind of course if you get some birdies early and kind of get rolling on the par 5s, you can shoot a good number,” Lewis said. “If you don’t, you’ll be struggling for pars. I mean, it’s a course that you can play well and shoot 1 or 2 under. So it’s just kind of the way the course plays, I think.”

Garcia in control at Barclays

FARMINGDALE, New York (AP) ― Bethpage Black lived up its reputation because of the greens, which in some cases looked brown.

Sergio Garcia called them the fastest putting surfaces he could recall. Nick Watney referred to them as extreme. More than one player suggested the course was unplayable Saturday in The Barclays, certainly late in the afternoon as the sun baked out the public course on Long Island. And yes, there were references to Shinnecock Hills, the private club on Long Island where the greens were out of control on the final day of the 2004 U.S. Open.

Garcia managed them just fine.

With no bogeys over his final eight holes, he turned a three-shot deficit into a two-shot lead over Nick Watney with a 2-under 69. Such were the conditions that Garcia was the only player among the final 18 to finish who broke 70.

“The course is extremely firm,” he said. “The greens, just probably some of the fastest greens I’ve ever played. Just one of those days where you knew it was going to be tough and you have to hold on very tight, and just kind of hope for the best.”

Garcia went four years without winning on the PGA Tour and now has a chance to make it two in a row and return to the top 10 in the world. He was at 10-under 203, and only four players were within four shots of the lead.

Watney, who made five putts over 15 feet, went after another one on the 18th hole and this one cost him. The ball raced 10 feet by the hole, and he missed it coming back for his only official three-putt of the round. That gave him an even-par 71, though still in good shape to make a run at his first win of the year.