Kim Suji 'Aiming for 3 Consecutive Wins'... Fourth Record in Sight

HiteJinro Championship 2R Midway Total 2 Under 142
Jung Yoonji, Bae Sohyun Just 2 Shots Behind Co-Leaders
Park Sunghyun Also Joins Under-Par Group... Kim Saeromi and Han Jinseon Tied for 4th

Kim Su-ji is teeing off at the 1st hole of the 2nd round of the KLPGA Tour Hite Jinro Championship. Photo by KLPGA

[Asia Economy Reporter Seohee Lee] Kim Suji (26) has increased the possibility of achieving the remarkable feat of winning three consecutive tournaments.

On the 7th, at the Blue Heron Golf Club (par 72) in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, Kim Suji recorded two birdies and finished the second round of the KLPGA Tour Hite Jinro Championship (total prize money 1.2 billion KRW) with a 2-under-par 70. With a total score of 2-under-par 142, she rose to third place. She is just two strokes behind the joint leaders Jung Yoonji (22) and Bae Sohyun (29), who are tied at 4-under-par 140.

Starting at the 1st hole (par 4), Kim Suji finished the front nine holes all with pars without reducing her strokes. However, in the back nine, she succeeded in lowering her score by two strokes with consecutive birdies on the 10th and 11th holes. She played a stable game without making a single bogey.

As the defending champion of this tournament, Kim Suji is challenging the record of winning the tournament twice in a row and achieving three consecutive weekly victories. So far, only three players?Kim Mihyun, Park Seri, and Seo Heekyung?have held the record for three consecutive wins on the KLPGA Tour. Since Seo Heekyung won the Hi-One Cup, KB Star Tour Round 3, and Bin Hai Open consecutively in 2008, no one has achieved this feat for 14 years. If Kim Suji wins this tournament, she will become the fourth player to hold this record and will be ranked first in the prize money rankings.

Jung Yoonji, who was co-leader the previous day, was overtaken by Bae Sohyun in the middle of the round but finished the game tied for first place by making a picturesque birdie on the final 18th hole (par 5).

Park Sunghyun (29), who returned to the domestic stage after a year and had attracted high attention even before the opening, shot a 1-under-par 71 on this day, recording a total score of 1-under-par 143, rising nine places from the previous day to joint 4th.

Jung Seulgi (27) and Song Gaeun (21), who were joint leaders the previous day, dropped to joint 7th and joint 20th with even-par 139 and 3-over-par 147, respectively.