It should come as no surprise that, in the shadow of the Hollywood sign in California, we’ve got a dramatic final act set to unfold at the JM Eagle LA Championship presented by Plastpro with a pair of Australians tied for the lead through 54 holes.
Hannah Green – the defending champion at Wilshire Country Club – and Grace Kim, sit at 7 under and own a one-shot advantage over a trio of players including Jin Hee Im, who fired a new 18-hole scoring record Saturday, an 8-under 63.
Green had a tidy, if turbulent, moving day at the JM Eagle LA Championship. She was the only golfer in the final five groups of the day to shoot under par after a 1-under 70.
“I feel quite exhausted to be honest,” Green admitted. “Hopefully tomorrow I can be a bit more consistent. Didn't hit many greens today and that's probably led to some of my bogeys. Hopefully I just play boring golf tomorrow and those putts go in.”
Green made three bogeys in her final five holes of her front nine and then righted the ship after making the turn. She rolled in an impressive eagle on the par-5 13th and very nearly dunked her approach shot on the par-4 14th. She managed to save par on 18 after nailing a 20-foot slider to put a bow on her day.
Im, Maja Stark, and Esther Henseleit are tied for third at 6 under, just a shot back of the Aussies, while Nasa Hataoka – who shot a 7-under 64 and would have tied Im’s record score had she not bogeyed her final hole of the day – is in sixth and just two back of the lead.
“Obviously saw some of the scores that people produced in the morning, 7-, 8-under. Some really great rounds. I knew it would be trickier in the afternoon when it gets a little bit bouncy, so I wanted to make sure that I was at least trying to shoot under par. When I was over par I was feeling like I was really behind the eight ball,” Green said. “The momentum switch on the back nine there made a big difference. Hopefully that putt, especially on 18, gives me some momentum into tomorrow as well.”
Green and Kim, who played a practice round together earlier in the week, will go off together in the final group Sunday. Kim won her first LPGA Tour title a year ago, while Green is a winner already this season, having won the HSBC Women’s World Championship this past March.
After Friday it seemed like Kim was in the drivers’ seat, sitting at -12 and holding a four-shot advantage. She struggled Saturday, however, and shot a 5-over 76 to fall back to the pack. Kim said she had a frustrating afternoon on the poa annua greens but tried to stay present.
“I think knowing I can go that low is always a good reminder that I can win the thing,” said Kim, who tied the previous-best 18-hole score in the first round, a 7-under 64. “I think at the end obviously I shaved a few edges today, so I couldn't take things personally from the greens and the results, because, again, it was very tough. But just mentally I'm telling myself I'm saving the birdies for tomorrow.”
Kim said that she and Green are “friends before competitors” so she’s looking forward to a comfortable grouping for Sunday’s finale.
Green didn’t believe anyone was going to get to -12 (Kim’s score after 36 holes) but now that Kim’s fallen back, Green is going to lean on her winning experience at Wilshire – even as she is paired with a long-time pal for the finale – to see if she can lift the trophy for the second year in a row.
“It's really nice I do have that experience and positive memories. Hopefully, yeah, I don't get too ahead of myself and think about that too much,” Green said. “Just keep playing every hole and not really think about the end result.”
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