It’s hard to catch a player who doesn’t make mistakes, and that’s exactly what’s allowed Hee Jeong Lim to begin pulling away at the BMW Ladies Championship. Lim, a South Korean player who has won four times on the KLPGA, hasn’t made a bogey yet in three rounds at Busan International in Busan, South Korea.
After a third-round 65, she’s 18 under and four shots ahead of her closest pursuers, fellow South Koreans Jin Young Ko and Na Rin An.
“I think recently there was an event where I had one bogey-free round. But three consecutive bogey-free rounds I think is a first time for me,” said Lim.
One thing contributing to Lim’s remarkable consistency is her accuracy. The 21-year-old missed her first fairway of the week on Saturday at the 11th hole.
“I wasn’t necessarily aware of the fact that that was the first fairway that I missed during this event. But I’m not really used to missing the fairway. I usually keep the fairway pretty well,” said Lim. “So being in the rough itself was a bit awkward I would have to say.”
We’re through 54 holes in the BMW Ladies Championship!
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Interestingly, Lim’s nickname on the KLPGA is “Stone Buddha,” which is a nod to the mental strength, resolve and calmness she displays on the course.
If Lim can hold on for another round, she’d become only the second non-member winner of the 2021 LPGA season, joining U.S. Women’s Open champion Yuka Saso from the Philippines. An would be in that same boat and both women would earn immediate LPGA tour membership from their win.
Ko, a former world No. 1, is not to be counted out, having won three times in the past four months. On the line for Ko, too, is a return to the top spot in the Rolex Rankings, a position currently occupied for Nelly Korda.
The top of the leaderboard is heavily occupied by South Koreans – not just Lim, An and Ko but also Hae Ran Ryu in the T4 position and In Gee Chun in the T-6 position – and the next win by a player from South Korea will be the 200th on tour. The vast majority of those victories (103 to be exact) came from 2010-2019. South Koreans have won 12 times since 2020.
Danielle Kang remains the highest American in the mix after rounds of 66-68-69 left her 13 under and tied for fourth with Ryu.
Notably, Minjee Lee, winner of six LPGA events including one major, is tied for sixth another shot back while American Alison Lee and Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn are tied for eighth at 11 under.
Another former world No. 1, Lydia Ko, is 9 under and tied for 12th.