LOS ANGELES — During Friday’s second round of the DIO Implant LA Open, Nasa Hataoka felt something click with her golf swing, helping her shoot a 3-under-par 67 and putting her on the top of the leaderboard with World No. 1 Jin Young Ko heading into Saturday’s third round at breezy Wilshire Country Club.
Hataoka’s heightened level of confidence with her swing and her game was on full display during the third round. Hitting 16 of 18 greens in regulation and making key putts throughout the round, Hataoka fired a 4-under 67, leaving her at 11-under 202 through 54 holes, four shots ahead of Australian Hannah Green who is alone in second at 7-under 206. Ko and fellow South Koreans Inbee Park (68) and Haeji Kang (69) are all tied for third at 6-under 207.
“I didn’t expect this position at the beginning of this week, but like I said before, something clicked inside me during yesterday’s round so I’ll try to keep that,” said Hataoka, a 23-year-old from Japan who has five LPGA Tour victories.
“All of my birdies except the one on nine were inside 15 feet, so I feel like I was putting really good. Especially afternoon, the poana greens are really tricky, but I feel like I was able to adjust to that.”
Prior to the round, there was a lot of excitement about having Hataoka and Ko playing together in the final group. They are two of the LPGA’s brightest young stars, owning a combined 18 LPGA wins between them.
Through 15 holes on Saturday the two players lived up to the hype, each taking turns grabbing the lead. But over the ensuing two holes both the tie and perhaps Ko’s chances for her 14th LPGA tournament win were shattered by some uncharacteristically bad shots from Ko, who played 16 and 17 at 5 over.
Ko’s problems started with her third shot at the par-4 16th hole, when her chip from just below the green came up short, causing the ball to roll back to her. Her next chip went long, ending up 15 feet from the hole, but Ko calmly converted the bogey putt to minimize the damage. Hataoka made a birdie on the hole, giving her a two-shot lead.
But Ko’s troubles were far from over. After a perfect drive on the par-4, 17th hole, Ko pulled her approach shot into a water-filled barranca that runs the length of the 17th green. Ko’s ball somehow found a patch of mud, so instead of taking a penalty drop, Ko opted to play her ball where it came to rest. Twice she attempted to blast out of the barranca and twice she failed to escape. Ko finally took her drop, but the damage was done, and she finished with a quadruple-bogey 8.
To Ko’s credit, she rallied to make a birdie on the final hole, but now must come from five shots back on Sunday if she hopes to win the tournament.
“I played not bad; just 17 was big mistake. But this is golf. I don’t have regret,” Ko said. “I thought if I make par (on 18) still good, but I make birdie on last hole. (Making birdie) on last hole is huge for next round. This course is tough one, so I’m trying to focus on my game. And I have one more round to go, so I will use all the energy from my body.”
With most of the fans focused on Hataoka and Ko, Green was able to go out and play under the radar. Without much pressure, she posted a solid round of 69, putting her in prime position to make a run at a win on Sunday.
“Since I came back out to play this year my ball-striking has been really consistent, which is nice, because I feel like last year I improved but it was kind of up and down,” Green said. “I feel like I’m hitting the ball really well. It’s nice that I’m hitting a lot of greens. I’m not necessarily always hitting it close, but here the greens are small so you kind of got a good opportunity. The back nine I had some better shots in, so that’s why I was able to make some birdies.”
Green said her round could have been even better had she been able to get comfortable with her putting. She said she felt pretty flat with the putter all day and as a result she missed a lot of putts on the high side of the hole.
“I feel like if I can get my speed control I can see a lot of putts going in,” Green said. “But I feel like I haven’t played my entire best, so I’m hoping tomorrow I can kind of get everything to go my way and try and put as much pressure on Nasa as possible.”
First-round leader Alison Lee, a former UCLA standout from Valencia, shot a 73 and is tied for 35th at even-par 213.
The tournament is part of a two-week run in the Los Angeles area, with the Palos Verdes Championship next week.