ORLANDO, Fla. – Nelly Korda entered the lead Saturday in the GainGA LPGA with a 4-under 68 that left her in a position to be a lasting win for Korda’s family to start the season.
Korda, whose older sister Jessica won the Diamond Resorts Tournament last month to kick off the new LPGA Tour season, missed just one glimpse of an awful day at Lake Nona to be led by a man over Patty Tavatanakit.
“Any time you get ahead of the pack going into Sunday is a positive thing,” Korda said. “There are some good players, so it will take a good golfer to win.”
Annika Sorenstam had no expectations, playing for the first time in more than 12 years after his retirement. She kept leaving herself in bad spots around the green and finished with 79. That put her in the final spot with four hits, 22 hits behind Korda.
The 50-year-old Swede was making a one-time appearance as the contestant was brought to her home course, and she was happy enough to make the cut to the number.
“We put every effort into every single picture,” Sorenstam said. “I shouldn’t have been today. Another day tomorrow. I got two bonus days this week, so that’s a good thing.”
Korda was at 13-under 203, one shot ahead of Tavatanakit, the Thai star who only needed half a dozen starts on the Symetra Tour to earn her LPGA card when she left UCLA.
Tavatanakit closed with four birdies over her last five holes, including the last three, for 66. She will be in the final group Sunday with Korda and Angel Yin, who was 65 and there were three blows behind him.
Lydia Ko, the 36-hole leader who is trying to win for the first time in nearly three years, was also three hits behind. Ko fell back with a double bogey on the 12th hole, and then a bogey on the 18th.
Also at 10-under 203 was Jin Young Ko, the No. 1 player in women’s golf, who shot at 66 to get his place.
For Sorenstam, it will be a ceremonial walk in front of family and friends Sunday on a home course where its neighbors for years would be more likely to see it at Easter or the pickleball courts than on the golf course.
Her bogey problems started on the par-5 15th, starting five bogeys in an eight-hole stretch.
“Normally, I hit the ball straight, and today it was all just straight,” Sorenstam said. “I may need to tweak my swing a bit – I’m not sure what tweak should be right now. We have to prove that. But I have to hit it just to get a chance to shoot under par again. Would that ‘s fun to leave it on a high note. “