NAPLES, Fla. — Gino Titikul birdied each gap Friday in a efficiency befitting the No. 1 participant in ladies’s golf, posting a 9-under 63 to take a three-shot lead on the CME Group Tour Championship and transfer the Thai star nearer to a different $4 million in prize cash and the LPGA Participant of the 12 months title.
Nelly Korda, who changed Titicle on the high of the world rankings earlier this 12 months, made sufficient putts for a 64 that put him on the high of the leaderboard across the time Titicle began.
She had a five-stroke lead, growing her possibilities of at the least successful for the primary time this 12 months.
Titicle made it tough for everybody, making 4 birdies in a row close to the flip and 6 birdies in eight holes. She performed alongside Kim Sei-young, however Kim did her finest to maintain tempo, scoring a 66 with six birdies on the again 9 at Tiburon Golf Membership.
Defending champion Titikle shot 14-under 130.
“It is undoubtedly higher than yesterday,” Titicle mentioned with a smile. “Nonetheless, I had no complaints with 9 birdies and no bogeys. So I am going to take it.”
Somi Lee began the ultimate spherical of the LPGA season with a 64, bogeyed on the par-5 first gap, and did not actually get going. She made two birdies within the final 5 holes and shot a 70, leaving her tied with Nasa Hataoka (67) with a four-stroke lead over the Koreans.
However this was Titicle’s present, and all Kim may do was sustain, taking part in alongside her on one other heat day with receptive grass on the greens that permits for such good scores.
“9 holes, Gino is 5 strokes (lead),” Kim mentioned. “I attempt to get a variety of birdies, particularly on the again 9. Yeah, I fired up on the again 9. I imply, she’s nice. She turned each gap right into a birdie alternative. She’s an awesome participant. I made birdies, she made birdies.”
They birdied all however two of the final 11 holes they performed.
Titicle leads the points-based award for LPGA Participant of the 12 months. The one participant who can catch her is Japan’s British Ladies’s Open champion Miyu Yamashita, who shot a 69 and entered the weekend with a nine-stroke lead.
Titicle and Yamashita are the one gamers with a number of wins this 12 months.
After a season through which he gained seven titles in 2024, Korda is surprisingly nonetheless winless this 12 months and has additionally gotten off to a gradual begin within the Tour Championship. However she made various birdie putts within the 10- to 15-foot vary within the second spherical, making her an early goal.
What brought on her placing to enhance?
“Truthfully, I went to the placing inexperienced for 5 minutes yesterday and I truly noticed some balls roll into the outlet, which was good, after which I left,” Korda mentioned.
She additionally performed a low spherical to regain the place at Anika final Friday, however fell again over the weekend. This time, she has a five-shot lead over the participant who deserves the title of finest in ladies’s golf.
Titicle started his birdie streak with two 10-foot pictures on the eighth and ninth holes. She then hit a wedge to only in need of the cup on the tenth, and on the eleventh, Tiburon’s most tough gap, she hit a 5-foot strategy to the back-right pin over a bunker.
The one time she missed the inexperienced was on the 18th, as a result of her strategy rolled simply outdoors the inexperienced and he or she nonetheless missed a birdie putt from about 18 toes.
With 36 holes remaining, seven gamers have been inside 5 pictures of Titicle, a bunch that included Brooke Henderson and Minjee Lee. The winner will obtain $4 million, the most important prize in ladies’s golf.
Titicle shot 22 below final 12 months, however nonetheless solely gained by one stroke. The earlier 12 months, Amy Yang gained with a 27-under 261, setting a brand new match report. So she realized she wanted to maintain Birdie.
“As I all the time say, all of the winners right here, the scores are like 20+, which is a extremely low rating,” Titicle mentioned. “We simply have to make an increasing number of.”
