Golf: Lydia Ko misses the cut at the LA Open five days after dominant title win

Lydia Ko in action at the LA Open. Photo / AP

An improved second round wasn't enough as Lydia Ko missed the cut at the latest LPGA Tour event in Los Angeles.

Fresh from winning for the first time in nearly three years last weekend, Ko made a horror start shooting, a seven-over par round in the first round of the Los Angeles Open.

She managed to recover on day two with a three-under round to improve to four-over par, but still missed the cut by two strokes.

Lydia Ko in action at the LA Open. Photo / AP

Ko's playing partner Jessica Korda shot a six-under 65 to break the tournament 36-hole scoring record and increase her lead to three strokes.

A day after matching the Wilshire Country Club tournament record with a 64, Korda opened her bogey-free morning round with birdies on three of her first four holes — holing a 15-footer to start on the par-four 10th. At 13-under 129, she smashed the midway event mark of eight-under set by Moriya Jutanugarn in 2018 in the inaugural tournament.

"It's going to sound crazy, but I actually lipped out a good amount out there, so it actually could have been lower," Korda said.

Korda won the season-opening Tournament of Champions in January for her sixth LPGA Tour title, and sister Nelly Korda followed with a victory a month later in the Gainbridge LPGA in the second event of the year.

Jessica Korda has 13 straight under-par rounds. She hit 33 of 36 greens in the first two rounds.

"You're just plotting your way around the golf course and trying to be smart where we keep it," she said. "I got above the hole on a couple holes and they're not easy putts, so you can definitely get out of position really easily out here, so we've been pretty smart."

She was 17 strokes ahead of playing partners Ko and Patty Tavatanakit.

"I love being paired with Lydia," Korda said. "Anytime I get paired with Lydia, we always have such a great time. It was very easy going."

- With AP