Chevron Championship: Jin Young Ko fights her way back into contention with second-round 68

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. — Jin Young Ko, the No.1 player in the Rolex rankings and winner of six of her last 11 starts on the LPGA, found herself outside of the cut line at the start of the second round of the Chevron Championship. She shot a 74 on Thursday that snapped her consecutive rounds under-par streak at 34. Ko responded like a top player.

Playing with Lexi Thompson, Ko rallied with a 4-under 68 in the second round Friday. That pushed her to 2-under par for the tournament, well inside the cut line that came at 1-over 145. That’s still seven shots behind 36-hole leader Hinako Shibuno.

Several big names who struggled Thursday played their way back into the cut with solid rounds Friday, including past Chevron winners Inbee Park (69 in the second round) and Seon Yo Ryu (68), both at even par for the first two days.

Perhaps the biggest name to miss the cut is Yuka Saso, the reigning U.S. Women’s Open champion, who finished two rounds at 2-over par.

Home cooking

Last week Gabriela Ruffels was in the field of the developmental Epson Tour event in Beaumont. That’s where Ruffels, whose home course is Toscana Country Club in Indian Wells, will play most of her golf this year since she does not have status on the LPGA after failing to maintain her LPGA playing privileges through qualifying school.

This week, Ruffels is playing for a major championship on the LPGA Tour at the Chevron Championship. While she is not exempt for the regular tour, she made the field of the Chevron by finishing in the top 20 of the Mission Hills event in 2021. A final-hole birdie allowed her to finish 19th.

Ruffels, the 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, is obviously pleased to be back at Mission Hills this year even as she’s planning a year on the Epson Tour.

“I can’t really control that. Yeah, I don’t have any status, but I just feel like I’m so grateful to be out here,” Ruffels said. “When I do get a start, I’m just so grateful to be here.”

Ruffels has played in the tournament twice, finishing 15th in 2020 and then 19th last year.

“It’s really cool to be out here again. I had exemptions last year on the LPGA Tour but couldn’t quite get status through Q-School,” she said. “I just think it’s just being grateful to be out here and just having a lot of fun playing against the best in the world.”

Through 36 holes, Ruffels is 5-under 139, including a 71 Friday.

Red-hot player

There is lots of talk about how well Jin Young Ko has played in the last few months on the LPGA, but it is Nanna Koerstz Madsen who might actually be the hottest player on the tour. In her last two starts, she has a win at the Honda LPGA Thailand and a playoff loss at the JTBC Classic in Carlsbad last week.

That has Koerstz Madsen in second place in the Race to the CME Globe points behind Danielle Kang. Koerstz Madsen said her solid play is just a matter of taking her time.

“I’m just staying patient and trusting my game. I was very frustrated after my round yesterday,” Koerstz Madsen said about her opening 71. “I didn’t hit the ball good at all yesterday. I really fought around. Only hit eight greens yesterday.”

She rebounded with a 5-under 67 on Friday to get back in the hunt.

Nanna Koerstz Madsen hits her second shot on the 9th hole during the second round of the Chevron Championship at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California, April 1, 2022.

“So just really that I grinded it out yesterday and ended up getting it to minus-1, and then I had some time on the range,” she said. “As long as I think I can play good, then I believe it.”

Give us the cheers

Georgia Hall played in the Chevron Championship when there were no fans on the course because of COVID-19, and she knows she didn’t like it.

“Yeah, I mean, it’s a big difference having fans,” Hall said Friday after shooting a 1-under 71 to get to 5-under for the tournament. “It was really quiet the first time we came out and there was no one here. It didn’t feel like a major.”

Things have changed and for the better with fans back on the course this week, and Hall notices that the crowds seem to be a bit bigger than three years ago.

“Now everyone is back out and kind of back to normal,” she said. “It’s really nice. Always nice to get some support even though I’m out of the U.K.”