S. Korean up 1 in Cincinnati event
CINCINNATI — Without a top 10 since the Asia swing in early March, Jeongeun Lee6 posted her best score in almost a year on Friday with a 9-under 63 that gave her a one-shot lead in the Kroger Queen City Championship.
Lee6 has gone three years since her lone win on the LPGA Tour at the 2019 U.S. Women’s Open, and the 26-year-old South Korean hasn’t contended since Singapore at the HSBC Women’s World Championship.
She was at 13-under 131, one ahead of Janet Lin of China, who had a 68. Ally Ewing had six straight birdies on the front nine and shot 64, leaving her two behind.
Lee6 was never under much stress and was at her best around the turn at Kenwood Country Club, making seven birdies in a 10-hole stretch.
“It was a good bogeyfree round, and it’s been a while I played bogeyfree, so I’m really satisfied with my game today,” Lee6 said. “Two more rounds, so I’m just going to focus on my swing. I’m focusing on just downswing, so I did really well today.“
A teenager still in high school will be around for the weekend at the first LPGA Tour event in Cincinnati since 1989. Anna Davis, the 16-yearold from the San Diego area who won the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, had a 66 and was at 4-under 140.
Davis has made the cut in three of her five LPGA starts this year, one of them a major at the Evian Championship. She also made the cut two weeks ago in Canada. She was tied for 26th going into the weekend in Cincinnati.
“I’m very excited,” Davis said. “I’m not very in contention, but kind of finally up there on the leaderboard a little bit, so it’ll be nice to see if I can keep climbing the leaderboard on the weekend.”