Lydia Ko still in contention at Chevron Championship as Texas tournament reaches midway point

Lydia Ko is in a tie for 10th at the halfway point of the Chevron Championship. Photo / AP

Lydia Ko has shaken off some bad memories of her time at The Club at Carlton Woods in 2023 to remain in contention at the LPGA Chevron Championship at the turn.

After missing the cut at the event last year, Ko sits in a seven-way tie for 10th after two rounds in Texas at four-under-par with a second-round 71 on Saturday (NZ time).

Following her opening round 69, Ko bogeyed two of her first five holes on Saturday, with one more in the round on the par-four 15th. She got some shots back with birdies on holes six, seven, 13 and 18.

Ko and the others tied for 10th sit four shots back from leaders Jin Hee Im and Atthaya Thitikul.

“I actually felt a lot more comfortable playing the golf course on Monday versus last year,” Ko said. “I almost ran out of golf balls when I played my first-ever practice round here last year. I think by the time that tournament had already come, it’s hard to look away from the holes where you had already hit it in the water.

“I felt a lot more comfortable. I already missed the cut here once; [it] can’t really get worse than that. It’s goal achieved to make the cut.

“I’ve been playing really solid the last couple days. Hopefully [I’ll] keep giving myself opportunities and just because these greens are new, some pin positions are pretty difficult to get to, so just being smart with which holes to attack and which holes to be a little bit more conservative.”

Ko, who won this tournament in 2016 at Mission Hills in the California desert, needs just one more tour win to earn induction to the LPGA Hall of Fame, after capturing her 20th career LPGA victory at the HGV Tournament of Champions in January. Ko became the 15th player in tour history to reach the milestone, while it was her 28th victory since turning professional in 2012 and marked the 10th year the Kiwi recorded at least one win.