Yoo Hae-ran's 'Rookie Storm'... "Have You Seen the 8-Under Par?"

LPGA Tour Drive On Championship Round 3
Boutier Leads, Ko Jin-young and Yang Hee-young Tied for 7th

Yoo Hae-ran is creating a 'rookie whirlwind.'

On the 25th (local time), Yoo Hae-ran shot an 8-under-par 64 in the third round of the LPGA Tour Drive On Championship (total prize money $1.75 million) held at Superstition Mountain Golf & Country Club (par 72, 6,526 yards) in Gold Canyon, Arizona, USA, rising to a tie for 2nd place (15-under-par 201). C?line Boutier (France) leads at 16-under-par 200, with Moriya Jutanugarn (Thailand) also tied for 2nd.

Yoo Hae-ran shot 8 under par in the third round of the Drive On Championship, her LPGA Tour debut, rising to a tie for second place.

Starting from a tie for 23rd place, 5 strokes behind, Yoo Hae-ran swept up 1 eagle and 6 birdies without any bogeys. She reduced 3 strokes in the front nine with 'stepping stone birdies' on holes 2 and 4 and a birdie on hole 8 (par 3). In the back nine, she energized the course with a birdie on hole 11 (par 4), consecutive birdies on holes 14 and 15, and an eagle on the final hole 18 (par 5). She powered her game with an impressive average drive of 299 yards. She missed the fairway only once and the green twice.

Yoo Hae-ran is a player who made a surprise victory as an invited player at the 2019 KLPGA Tour Jeju Samdasoo Masters. She immediately earned a regular tour card and won 1 title in 2020, claiming the Rookie of the Year award. She accumulated a total of 5 wins, including 2 wins in 2021 and 1 win in 2022. After passing the LPGA Tour Qualifying (Q) Series as the top qualifier last winter, she advanced to the U.S. stage this year. This tournament is her official LPGA Tour debut.

Ariya Jutanugarn (Thailand) posted the daily best score of 9-under-par 63, moving up to a tie for 5th place (14-under-par 202). Yang Hee-young also dropped 9 strokes to rise to a tie for 7th place (13-under-par 203). This group also includes world No. 3 Ko Jin-young, Kim Sei-young, and An Na-rin. Shin Ji-eun, who was co-leader the previous day, fell to a tie for 7th after shooting 1-under-par 71. Nelly Korda (USA) is tied for 31st (10-under-par 206), and Jeon In-ji is tied for 39th (9-under-par 207).