PORTLAND, Ore. – Brooke Henderson grew up toward the eastern part of Canada in Ontario, but the Pacific Northwest has quickly become a favorite of the budding 18-year-old star.

She continued her mastery of Columbia Edgewater Country Club, shooting a 70 Saturday to take a two-stroke lead into Sunday’s final round of the Cambia Portland Classic.

Henderson, who claimed her first LPGA Tour win a year ago in Portland, was at 13-under 203 heading into the final round. She leads Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe, who was 11-under after a 71.

Henderson, who earned her LPGA Tour card shortly after winning last year’s Portland event, was bidding for her third career win, all in the Northwest. Three weeks ago, Henderson rallied to win the Women’s PGA Championship at Sahalee in Sammamish, Washington.

Henderson has shared or held the outright Portland lead the past six rounds. She was aiming to become the first back-to-back Portland winner since Annika Sorenstam in 2002-03.

All wasn’t well Saturday for Henderson, who shot 69 or better in each of her first seven Portland Classic rounds at Columbia Edgewater, including last year’s Monday qualifier. Though she had four birdies, she was often scrambling to make par, and her card included a double bogey.

“I played pretty awful today. Definitely want to play better tomorrow. I mean, I hit a lot of good shots. I just didn’t capitalize on my chances. That was the first 12 holes for me,” Henderson said.

Norway’s Suzann Pettersen, tied for the lead with Henderson after the second round, faded to 9-under following a 74. Pettersen was the only player among the top 15 players who didn’t break par Saturday. Also at 9-under was 2014 Portland champion Austin Ernst following a 69.

Pettersen was bidding to become the Portland Classic’s second three-time winner, joining Nancy Lopez (1985, 1987, 1992). Pettersen has history in Portland, rallying during the final round to win the 2011 and 2013 tournaments. In 2011, Pettersen erased a nine-stroke deficit on the final day to beat Na Yeon Choi in a playoff.

American rookie Lee Lopez was 8-under after a 69.

No. 9 Stacy Lewis was six strokes back at 7-under after shooting 67, the day’s second best score. Cheyenne Woods, whose best finish in two years on the tour was a tie for 24th, was also 7-under following a 69, as was Carlota Ciganda after shooting 70.

Scotland’s Catriona Matthew was 6-under after a 66, the day’s low round. Matthew had a bogey-free card that included an eagle at the par-5, 463-yard seventh. Brianna Do (70) and Angela Stanford (72) were also 6-under.

Henderson said the golf course “has changed so much since Friday morning … it’s so firm and fast right now.” But Henderson says she doesn’t plan to dramatically alter her strategy for Sunday’s final round.

“I think there are definitely holes where par is good. Just kind of get in and out,” Henderson said. “There are definitely still a lot of birdie opportunities out there. If you’re hitting the ball well and in the right spots, you can definitely still shoot a low score. You just have to be careful of the conditions.”

Henderson, tied for the second round lead with Pettersen after two rounds, opened up a two-shot advantage over Uribe at the turn with a front nine of 2-under 34. Pettersen struggled, closing the front nine with back-to-back bogeys to fall four strokes behind Henderson.

The tournament’s complexion changed at the par-3, 160-yard 13th, when Henderson and Uribe each hit their tee shots in the water and made double bogey. Pettersen suddenly was back in it, trailing Henderson by just a shot.

“I didn’t take my time on the tee shot…I just mishit it,” Henderson said.

But Henderson collected herself and made four pars and a birdie, at the par-3 16th, during her final five holes.

Uribe was looking for her first LPGA Tour win. In her sixth year on tour, Uribe’s best finish was third at the 2015 Manulife Classic. The last Colombian to win an LPGA event was Marisa Baena in 2005.

“It would mean a lot to win. This year has been a little tough one me. The results haven’t come. Tomorrow, I’m going to think on my game, shoot a low round. I love playing with Brooke and she’s been playing so good,” Uribe said. “If I win, I want it to be because I shoot a really good round, not because anyone else struggles.”

Vicky Hurst shot 70 and was among four players at 211.

Mariah Stackhouse, the Stanford four-time All-American making her professional debut is 2-under after a 71, as is 2012 Portland champion Mika Miyazato, who shot 70.

A third-round 73 has Hamilton’s Alena Sharp in a five-way tie for 61st, while Victoria native Naomi Ko of Team Canada’s National Team is 71st at 7-over.

The Portland Classic purse is $1.3 million, with $195,000 going to the winner.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Defending champion Brooke Henderson and Sweden’s Suzann Pettersen shared the lead at 11-under 133 after Friday’s second round of the LPGA Cambia Portland Classic.

Pettersen shot the day’s low score with an 8-under 64, while No. 2 Henderson, an 18-year-old Canadian who won her first LPGA Tour event last year in Portland, shot 68 at Columbia Edgewater.

Pettersen and Henderson, who have combined to win three of the past five Portland Classics, led by one stroke over Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe, who shot 67.

The No. 18 Pettersen, playing in the morning, had eight birdies on a bogey-free card. Henderson, playing in the afternoon, caught Pettersen when she rolled in a 10-foot birdie putt at the par-4, 393-yard 18th.

“I finally had a fantastic putting day today. Finally. It’s nice,” Pettersen said. “The long game is good. I feel like when I putt well I can put a good score. Today, I felt like I could make anything. That’s a nice feel.”

Henderson has shared or held Portland’s outright lead the past five rounds, dating back to last year’s second round.

“I really like this golf course. I like the Northwest. I’ve played pretty well on these courses,” said Henderson, who won the Women’s PGA Championship at Sahalee in Sammamish, Washington, three weeks ago.

Pettersen was no surprise on the Portland Classic leaderboard. She has posted top-five finishes in four of her past seven Portland tournaments, winning in 2011 and 2013.

“I just like it here. It’s a lot of hard work that is finally starting to come together,” said Pettersen, who has struggled with back problems and is looking for her first win in 13 months.

Austin Ernst, Pernilla Lindberg and Angela Stanford were five shots back at 6-under. Ernst, the 2014 Portland champion, shot 66, while Lindberg had 68 and Stanford a 71.

Lee Lopez (68), Prima Thammaraks (69) and Carlota Ciganda (71) were 5 under. Among a group of seven at 4 under are Kelly Shon, Cheyenne Wood and Jaye Marie Green. Shon made eight birdies on her way to a 66.

Pettersen was bidding to become the tournament’s second three-time winner, joining Nancy Lopez, who won in 1985, 1987 and 1992. The Portland Classic is the LPGA Tour’s longest-running non-major, now in its 45th year.

Pettersen collected her birdies in bunches. Starting on the back nine, she made four consecutive on holes No. 12-15. Pettersen finished strong, making birdies on three of her final four holes, closing with a 20-foot birdie putt at the par-4, 410-yard ninth.

Pettersen thought the difference between Thursday’s 69 and her second-round 64 might have been playing in the morning.

“Obviously there are certain courses you play well, but you can’t take anything for granted out here,” Pettersen said. “I sure did find some magic on the greens today. I felt like I played great yesterday. I tried to take advantage of the little softer greens this morning and little purer greens as well.”

Pettersen took 24 putts, which she said “for me, that’s record breaking.”

Henderson, who had five birdies and a bogey, thought she got the most out of her round.

“I didn’t hit the ball as solidly as I’m used to. On this course you kind of need to hit fairways and you need to hit greens. For the way I struck the ball, I scored extremely well,” Henderson said.

Henderson did most of her damage on the par-5s, making birdies on all four. But perhaps the best shot of Henderson’s round came at the par-4, 393-yard 18th, where she hit her drive under a tree. With a greenside lake directly between her ball and the hole, Henderson blasted a low-running 6-iron from about 165 yards to within 10 feet, then made the birdie putt.

“That was definitely the high point of today’s round,” Henderson said.

Henderson, who earned her LPGA card shortly after winning at Portland last year, plays in Pettersen’s group Saturday, just the second time the two have been paired.

“Along with Morgan Pressel, she was the one I really looked up to growing up and kind of wanted to be like,” Henderson said.

Christina Kim shot 66 to finish at 3 under, a group also included Vicky Hurst (71), Chella Choi (71) and Lee-Anne Pace (72).

No. 9 Stacy Lewis was 2 under after a 70. American Morgan Pressel shot 71 to finish at 1 under.

A 3-under 69 from Team Canada National Team member Naomi Ko moved the Victoria native into a tie for 62nd alongside Hamilton’s Alena Sharp. Lorie Kane (Charlottetown), A.J. Eathorne (Penticton, B.C.), Québec’s Anne-Catherine Tanguay and Samantha Richdale of Kelowna, B.C., will not advance to weekend-play.

Among those who didn’t make the cut at 1 over were Americans Cristie Kerr, Lizette Salas and Marina Alex.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Defending champion Brooke Henderson shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday to take a two-stroke lead after the opening round of the LPGA Cambia Portland Classic on Thursday.

Picking up where she left off from a year ago, when Henderson shot a 21-under 267 to win her first LPGA tournament, the 18-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., hit 16 greens and made nine birdies on a warm, cloudless day at the 6,476-yard Columbia Edgewater course.

Henderson said a combination of factors allows her to feel at home at Columbia Edgewater.

“I love tree-lined courses, and that’s very much what this course is. With the bent grass, which is kind of what I grew up on, I really like it. It suits my eye,” Henderson said. “Then winning here, that gives me those extra vibes and adrenaline, which I think will help as the week goes on. This golf course, being out here in the Northwest, in the beautiful temperature, I like wearing long sleeves and pants.”

Angela Stanford, Demi Runas and Mariajo Uribe each shot 67 to trail Henderson.

Runas, whose best career finish is a tie for 25th, and Uribe are looking for their first LPGA victories. Stanford lost in a playoff in the 2003 U.S. Women’s Open at Pumpkin Ridge, which has previously played host to the Portland Classic. Uribe and Stanford shot bogey-free rounds.

Stanford, who tied for fourth last week in Arkansas, is somewhat of a surprise among the leaders. She hasn’t had much success at the Portland Classic, her best finish a tie for eighth in 12 tries.

“Poana greens are usually not very friendly to me. It’s nice to watch the ball go in the hole here. I haven’t always played well here, so I tried to just put that on the back burner and see if I could carry it over from last week, and it did,” Stanford said.

Carlota Ciganda, Jaye Marie Green, Ayako Uehara and Daniela Iacobelli shot 68. Four strokes back at 69 are No. 18 Suzann Pettersen, Sarah Jane Smith, Lee-Anne Pace, Briana Mao and Jiayi Zhou.

Pettersen is a two-time Portland winner, claiming the 2011 and 2013 tournaments.

No. 15 Anna Nordqvist is among 12 players at 70. No. 9 Stacy Lewis shot even-par 72, as did Austin Ernst, the 2014 Portland champion.

Henderson, starting early in the morning on the back nine, was only 1-under through seven holes. But she birdied three of the next four holes, then finished on fire while playing the front nine, making consecutive birdies on holes 5 through 8. Henderson just missed a fifth consecutive birdie, sliding a 15-foot putt past the left side of the hole at the par-4 ninth.

It was a bogey at the par-4, 391-yard fourth that helped ignite Henderson’s string of four consecutive birdies.

“That was a dumb hole … a hole with my length I could have taken advantage of. The bogey bothered me a little. I knew I had two par-5s coming up, so I tried to focus on them,” Henderson said.

In her last six rounds at Columbia-Edgewater, counting last year’s Monday qualifier, Henderson is 32-under par, all six rounds in the 60s.

Last year, Henderson won the Portland Classic by eight strokes, and became the third youngest champion in LPGA Tour history. Since winning her maiden event, Henderson has soared to become No. 2 ranked, and two weeks ago won the Women’s PGA Championship.

Henderson is attempting to become Portland’s first back-to-back champion since Annika Sorenstam won the 2002 and 2003 tournaments.

Alena Sharp’s even-par round has the Hamilton native tied for 41st. A quartet of Canadians are knotted at 4-over: Team Canada National Team member Naomi Ko (Victoria), Anne-Catherine Tanguay (Québec), Lorie Kane (Charlottetown) and A.J. Eathorne (Penticton, B.C.). Samantha Richdale of Kelowna, B.C., shot 77.

The Portland Classic is normally played in late August, but moved up because the LPGA is taking three weeks off for the Olympics. The Portland stop is typically popular among the tour’s best players, but with the U.S. Open scheduled for next week in California, only 13 of the world’s top 50 entered this year.

The Portland Classic is the LPGA Tour’s longest-running non-major, now in its 45th year. The purse is $1.3 million, with $195,000 going to the winner.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Brooke Henderson has come a long way since her win last year in Portland.

Back then she didn’t even have LPGA Tour status. She was a Monday qualifier for the Portland Classic, urged to try for a spot in the field by her older sister.

She went on to become just the second Monday qualifier to win an LPGA event, and she did it in decisive fashion, winning by eight strokes.

She was just 17 years old.

“It’s definitely been an incredible 18 months, turning pro at 17 and then didn’t have status on the LPGA tour, and was trying to play my way into events and just trying to see what would happen,” Henderson said. “I really took the best advantage of the opportunities I was given and I won here last year, which really changed my whole career.”

The Canadian teenager has since climbed her way up the rankings, reaching No. 2. She’s third on the money list this year. And she’s got a major championship – she won the Women’s PGA Championship two weeks ago by defeating top-ranked Lydia Ko in a playoff.

Ko opted out of playing in Portland.

With her Portland win last year, Henderson became the third-youngest champion in LPGA Tour history at 17 years, 11 months, and six days. She was the first Canadian to win on the tour since Lorie Kane in 2001.

“It was definitely a huge stepping stone for me,” Henderson said. “Right afterward I did try to soak it all in. Then I moved right into the Canadian Open, where it was a huge celebration all over Canada with Canadian fans and that was really cool. It definitely was a huge accomplishment here and I hope that maybe this year I’ll win by nine.”

SKIPPING PORTLAND: Thirty-seven of the top 50 players are skipping the Portland stop. Many players are opting to take this week off ahead of the U.S. Women’s Open next week in California. Normally the Portland tournament is popular among the women, but it was moved up in the schedule this year because the LPGA is taking three weeks off for the Olympics. For the past 11 years the event has been held in August.

RIO BOUND: The field for the Portland Classic includes 20 players from 16 different nations who are set to play in the Rio Olympics this summer. Henderson will represent her native Canada, and Stacy Lewis is set to play for the United States.

But South Africa’s Lee-Anne Pace announced Wednesday that she is withdrawing from the Olympics over concern about the Zika virus.

“I hope that everyone can understand that this was a very difficult decision to come to, however my health and my future family’s health must come first,” said Pace, who is ranked 38th in the world.

Several PGA players have pulled out of the Olympics citing concern about the Zika virus (including Australian Jason Day and Ireland’s Shane Lowry this week), but none of their LPGA counterparts had until Pace.

YOUTH IS SERVED: Mariel Galdiano earned a spot in the Portland Classic in the Monday qualifier. The 18-year-old, about to start her freshman year at UCLA, said the fact that Henderson won as a Monday qualifier is not lost on her. In fact, the average age of tour winners this year is just over 21.

“(It) definitely shows how young the game is getting and how close we are as junior golfers, how close our dreams are and how good we can become,” she said.

Galdiano comes from Hawaii where she went to the prestigious Punahou School, which boasts famous alumni including Michelle Wie and President Barack Obama.

THE DETAILS: The Portland Classic is the longest-running non-major on the LPGA Tour, now in its 45th year. The 72-hole event at Columbia Edgewater Country Club starts Thursday and runs through Sunday, with a cut to 70 after the first 36 holes. This year’s purse is $1.3 million, with $195,000 going to the winner.

ROGERS, Ark. – Top-ranked Lydia Ko won the NW Arkansas Championship on Sunday for her third LPGA Tour victory of the year, closing with a 3-under 68 for a tournament-record 17-under total and a three-stroke victory.

The 19-year-old New Zealander has 13 career LPGA Tour victories, also winning the Kia Classic and major ANA Inspiration in consecutive weeks in Southern California. She broke the previous tournament record by two strokes.

Ko has finished sixth or better in each of her four appearances at Pinnacle Country Club, and she has shot under par in all 12 rounds.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp entered the day two strokes behind Ko, but fell out of contention with a even-par 71. She finished in eighth at 12 under. Maude-Aimee Leblanc, from Sherbrooke, Que., shot a 2-under 69 to finish 5 under.

Morgan Pressel, tied for the lead with Ko at 14 under entering the day, had a 71 to tie for second with Candie Kung (69).

Pressel was the clubhouse leader by two shots Saturday afternoon before Ko shot a back-nine 28 and tied her at 14 under with an eagle on the par-5 18th.

The New Zealander, who became the youngest two-time major winner in LPGA history at the ANA Inspiration, wasted little time in taking control of the tournament after teeing off Sunday.

Playing in the final pairing with Pressel, Ko birdied four of her first five holes – only settling for a par once in the five-hole stretch when narrowly missing a short birdie putt on the par-3 third. After Pressel bogeyed the par-5 second, Ko went from even to three shots clear of the field after only two holes.

And that was just the start of Ko’s final-round coronation on a 6,330-yard course she’s tamed in each of her four tournament appearances. Ko has shot below 70 in 11 of her 12 rounds at Pinnacle, including matching the course record with her 9-under 62 on Saturday.

Ko fell back to 17 under with a bogey on No. 6, but she stayed two shots clear of Pressel with a 30-foot birdie putt on the par-4 eighth. She then reached as low as 19 under with a birdie on the 246-yard par-4 10th, well on her way to topping the previous tournament low of 15 under – set by Seon Hwa Lee in 2008 and matched by Na Yeon Choi a year ago.

Pressel stayed within two shots of Ko for much of the round, reaching 17 under following a birdie on No. 10. However, her round unraveled with a poor tee shot on the par-3 11th – leading to the first of four straight bogeys that took Pressel, who is still in search of her first victory since 2008, out of contention.

Ko, atop the world rankings for the last 35 weeks, earned $300,000. She began the 18th with a four-shot lead before hitting her layup in the water and settling for a bogey.

ROGERS, Ark. – Top-ranked Lydia Ko eagled the par-5 18th to tie the course record at 9-under 62 and take a share of the second-round lead Saturday in the LPGA Tour’s NW Arkansas Championship.

Ko matched Morgan Pressel at 14-under 128 at Pinnacle Country Club, tying the tournament 36-hole record set by Veronica Felibert in 2012. Ko played the final eight holes in 7 under, making five birdies and the eagle.

Pressel, winless since 2008, had a 63.

China’s Jing Yan, Taiwan’s Candie Kung and Canada’s Alena Sharp were 12 under. Sharp birdied the last two holes for a 65, Yan also shot 65, and Kung had a 66.

First-round leader Ayako Uehara followed her opening 62 with a 74 to drop to 6 under.

The 19-year-old Ko closed with a flourish on the back nine at the 6,330-yard course she’s has much success on over the last three years. The New Zealander finished fourth as an amateur in the event three years ago, and followed that by finishing second and sixth over the last two years.

On Saturday, Ko made the turn at 7 under and was well off the early leaders when she missed the fairway with a poor drive on No. 10. She recovered to make par and followed with four straight birdies, capping her 7-under back nine with a 10-foot putt for birdie on No. 17 and a 12-foot eagle putt on the 520-yard par-5 18th.

Ko has two LPGA Tour victories this year, including the major ANA Inspiration, to push her career total to 12. The reining LPGA Tour Player of the Year has finished no lower than 23rd this year and had finished in the top 10 in eight of her 12 tournaments.

Pressel, meanwhile, hasn’t won since the 2008 Kapalua Classic. The major winner at the 2007 Kraft Nabisco Championship (no the ANA Inspirtation), however, has finished second five times since her last victory – including last month in Alabama.

Pressel was one of 13 players who opened the tournament with a 65 on Friday, and she quickly moved up the leaderboard during her afternoon round Saturday.

After Yan took the early clubhouse lead at 12 under following her second straight 65, Pressel moved into a tie at the top following back-to-back birdies on Nos. 13 and 14. She closed her round with a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-3 17th and a two-putt birdie on No. 18.

Pressel missed the cut last year, but she has finished as high as 16th in her eight previous appearances at the tournament. She hit 11 of 13 fairways and 15 of 18 greens in regulation on Saturday, needing 27 putts on her way to a career low round on the course – topping an opening-round 66 she shot in 2010.

Ko, who opened with 66, needed only 27 putts and hit 17 of 18 greens in regulation.

Local favourite and former No. 1 Stacy Lewis was 5 under after a 70.

Second-ranked Brooke Henderson, who beat Ko in a playoff two weeks ago at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, missed the cut after a second-round 73 and finished at even par.

Defending champion Na Yeon Choi also missed the cut, finishing at 4 over.

ROGERS, Ark. – One of Ayako Uehara’s best memories in her four full-time seasons on the LPGA Tour is a hole-in-one she made in her first appearance at the NW Arkansas Championship in 2013.

Uehara added to her growing list of memorable moments at Pinnacle Country Club by shooting a career-best 62 in the opening round Friday.

The 9-under round matched the course record and gave the Japanese player a two-stroke lead, a remarkable position for a player who entered the week ranked 214th in the world after struggling with her game for much of the year.

Uehara needed only 25 putts and made nine birdies in her bogey-free round, a score that bested her previous career low of 63 she posted in Malaysia in 2014. That was a year after her first appearance in northwest Arkansas, where she holed out on the par-3 17th on her way to a 25th-place finish.

It’s a moment she’s relived countless times since, especially in the days leading to the start of this week’s tournament.

“Since I got here this year, I’ve been watching this video of this hole-in-one many times,” Uehara said. “Also, I show my caddie.”

Taiwan’s Candie Kung had a 64, and 13 players, including Hamilton’s Alena Sharp, are tied for third at 65.

Uehara will tee off Saturday afternoon in pursuit of her first career victory, and at the very least looking to earn only her fourth career top-10 finish in 76 tournaments.

“The course conditions will be different, so we have to make good judgment decisions and we’ll go from there,” Uehara said.

Playing in muggy conditions after overnight rain, Uehara took advantage of the soft greens during the morning to match the course record of 62 set by Angela Park and Jane Park in 2008.

Uehara, whose best finish in an LPGA Tour event is third in Japan in the 2012 Mizuno Classic, missed the cut in eight of her first nine tournaments to begin this year. However, she entered this weekend having finished 39th or better in five of her last six events – an improvement in play she carried over to Friday.

After a pair of birdies on her opening nine, Uehara birdied four of the first five holes after the turn, including three straight to reach 7 under. She then reached 9 under with a closing birdie on the par-4 ninth, capping a round in which she hit 11 of 13 fairways and 16 of 18 greens in regulation.

Uehara finished 4 under at the NW Arkansas Championship during her rookie season in 2013, tying for 25th. However, she missed the cut at the event in each of the last two seasons before putting together her career-best round on Friday.

Top-ranked Lydia Ko opened the tournament with a 5-under 66, while local favorite Stacy Lewis shot a 4-under 67.

Ko and Lewis were paired together with Minjee Lee – who finished with a 65 – and the trio attracted the largest gallery of the morning at the 6,330-yard Pinnacle Country Club.

Lewis, the former world No. 1 who played collegiately at nearby Arkansas, hasn’t won since her victory in the event two years ago.

However, she continued to draw large cheers of “Woo Pig Sooie” from the Razorbacks fans and finished with the 67. She had 31 putts, missing an 8-foot birdie attempt on her final hole of the day.

Ko, meanwhile, closed her round with a flurry while in search of her third victory of the year. The New Zealander, after opening on the back nine, eagled the par-5 seventh with a 35-foot putt, and she recovered from a poor chip and bogey on No. 8 with a short birdie putt on the ninth.

Second-ranked Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., shot a 69. She beat Ko in a playoff two weeks ago in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship outside Seattle.

Maude-Aimée Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., and Kelowna, B.C., native Samantha Richdale are tied for 89th at even par.

Michelle Wie had a 71, and defending champion Na Yeon Choi shot 75.

BELMONT, Mich. – Sei Young Kim won the Meijer LPGA Classic on Sunday for her second victory of the year, beating Carlota Ciganda with a birdie on the first hole of a playoff.

After bogeying the 18th in regulation to drop into the playoff, the 23-year-old Kim rebounded on the par-4 hole in the playoff.

“I just angry on myself,” Kim said. “I just, ‘Oh, I have to bounce back because today before I play, I setting my goal no bogey play.’ But last one I missed with bogey. If I bounce back, yeah, it is a good work, so I did it well today.”

On the extra hole, the South Korean player hit a 124-yard shot from the deep left rough – so deep that she momentarily lost her ball after looking away – that ran onto the green and settled at 3 1/2 feet.

“I realize really a lot of release, so I try to (hit) before the 10 meter to the front,” said Kim, projected to remain fifth in the world ranking. “It was good and I hit great hit. And my ball position was a little settled down, so I tried a cut shot. It was a, yeah, good work.”

She finished with a 3-under 68 at Blythefield to match Ciganda at 17-under 267.

Ciganda, from Spain, parred the final five holes in a bogey-free 67. She’s winless on the tour, with four runner-up finishes – two in playoffs.

“One can win, and if you can’t win, second is the best,” Ciganda said. “I’ll keep trying and just keep playing golf.”

She also drove into the left rough in the playoff, then hit a 156-yard shot through the green and couldn’t get up-and-down for par.

“It’s been a really good week,” Ciganda said. “I played very solid, especially my putting was really good, so I’m very happy with the week. I made only two bogeys in 72 holes, so I think that’s really good with this rough. And a playoff, only one can win and, obviously, I hit it to the rough. It wasn’t an easy shot and she hit a really good one. Congratulations to her. She was better.”

Kim has five career victories, going 3-0 in playoffs. She also won the Founders Cup this year in Phoenix, shooting 63-66-70-62 to match Annika Sorenstam’s LPGA Tour scoring record of 27 under. Last year, she won three times and was the rookie of the year.

On 18 in regulation, Kim drove left into the rough under trees, hit her second into thick rough left of the green and missed a 15-foot par putt. She didn’t immediately know she was in a playoff.

“I didn’t know that until I finished 18 hole,” Kim said.

Her father, Jung Il, was with her on Father’s Day.

“I’m very happy to on the Father’s Day give it to my dad this trophy,” Kim said. “My dad really want to win this week.”

South Korea’s In Gee Chun, tied for the third-round lead with defending champion Lexi Thompson, had a 71 to finish third at 15 under. The U.S. Women’s Open champion bogeyed two of the first four holes.

Thompson, fighting back pain, shot a 72 to tie for fourth with top-ranked Lydia Ko at 14 under.

“The back is better the last two days,” Thompson said. “I had it taped up, so that wasn’t the issue. … I just didn’t putt well today. I had like 36 putts, I think, so that never helps out a scorecard. I still hit it pretty well, I thought. Just didn’t give myself too close birdie chances, but still didn’t hit that many good putts.”

Ko, coming off a playoff loss to Canada’s Brooke Henderson last week in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship outside Seattle, closed with a 68.

“I needed to have a really low one to try and catch up,” Ko said. “I just tried to focus on my game and just try and stay patient. All you can do is try the best you can and if the girls, like last week, if somebody plays good, you can’t do much about it.”

Ariya Jutanugarn, third last week after winning her previous three starts, tied for 18th at 7 under after a 68.

Alena Sharp led the Canadian contingent with a 71 to claim a share of 13th at 9 under. Henderson matched the Hamilton native’s score to tie for 21st at 6 under, and Maude-Aimée Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., finished T50.

Michelle Wie shot a 75 to tie for 56th at 1 under. She’s winless since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open and hasn’t had a top-10 finish in 38 events.

BELMONT, Mich. – Her ailing back a bit better after treatment, defending champion Lexi Thompson shot a 5-under 66 on Saturday for a share of the Meijer LPGA Classic lead with In Gee Chun.

“I got a lot of work done to it last night,” Thompson said about her back. “It was hurting quite a bit, but I have it all taped up and it helped out out there today, and took my pain pills. It was better today than yesterday.”

Thompson birdied five of the first 13 holes at Blythefield in her bogey-free round to match Chun at 15-under 198. The 21-year-old American birdied three of the four par-5 holes and is 9 under overall on the par 5s.

“I just hit a lot of drivers and, if my game’s on, it comes together,” said Thompson, possibly in danger of missing the Olympics if the back problem lingers into the busy summer. “It’s just a nice setting and atmosphere. It’s one of our best tournaments.”

Chun had a bogey-free 65, making four birdies in a five-hole stretch on the back nine. The U.S. Women’s Open champion sat out a month this year because of a back injury after she was struck by a suitcase that rival South Korean player Ha Na Jang’s father dropped down an escalator at the Singapore airport.

“My iron shot great,” Chun said. “I was putting very well. I was so good at rolling the ball on the line. … I’m always excited to play in the last group so I’m ready. I enjoy it. … I play with Lexi. It’s very exciting.”

Thompson’s father, Scott, is with her – setting up a possible Father’s Day victory present Sunday.

“That’s what I’m going to try to do, but just to have him out here supporting me and basically along the way for my journey my whole life always means a lot to me,” Thompson said. “No more pressure because then I won’t perform to my best. I’m just going to go out here, have fun, be relaxed, just how I have been the last three days. It’s been a very relaxing week so far.”

Thompson won the Honda LPGA Thailand in February for her seventh LPGA Tour title. The long-hitting Florida player, ranked fourth in the world, also won a Japan LPGA event last month.

Sei Young Kim was a stroke back after a 65. The South Korean player eagled the par-5 11th and parred the final seven holes. She won this year in Phoenix, shooting 63-66-70-62 to match Annika Sorenstam’s LPGA Tour scoring record of 27 under. Last year, she won three times and was the rookie of the year.

“The greens are holding very well so we can play second shot very aggressive and then make a lot of birdie chances. That’s a lot of help,” Kim said. “Great score, yeah. The fairways are little narrow, but if I keep it in the fairway, pretty sure I make birdie a couple holes.”

Spain’s Carlota Ciganda was 13 under after a 66, and China’s Shanshan Feng had a 65 to get to 12 under.

Top-ranked Lydia Ko shot a 67 to reach 11 under, starting the back nine with four straight birdies.

“I’ve just got to focus on my game,” Ko said. “The girls are going low so I know all I’ve got to do is have fun out there, be patient and hopefully make birdies. But you just never know what’s going to happen, and especially with the girls going low, there could be a very low number tomorrow.”

The 19-year-old New Zealander won the Kia Classic and major ANA Inspiration in consecutive weeks this year in Southern California.

No. 2 Brooke Henderson, coming off a playoff victory last week over Ko in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship outside Seattle, had a 72 to drop into a tie for 21st at 6 under. The 18-year-old Canadian had three straight bogeys late in the round.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was even on the day and holds a share of 11th. Maude-Aimée Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., is 1-under and is tied for 60th.

Michelle Wie shot a 67 to move into a tie for 28th at 5 under. She’s winless since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open and hasn’t had a top-10 finish in 37 events.

Ariya Jutanugarn, third last week after winning her previous three starts, was 4 under after a 72.

BELMONT, Mich. – Defending champion Lexi Thompson fought through back pain Friday to take the second-round lead in the Meijer LPGA Classic.

“It just came on last weekend and it was really bad today,” Thompson said. “I’m not really one to complain about pain because I just fight through it, but yeah, it’s hurting. I’m going to go and get a rubdown and see if it goes away.”

The 21-year-old Thompson shot a 4-under 67, rebounding from bogeys on 15 and 16 with birdies on the final two holes to reach 10-under 132 at Blythefield.

“It was definitely important to come back from the two bogeys,” Thompson said. “I just hit a few errant drives there toward the end and made bogeys, but I played 17 and 18 well.”

Canada’s Alena Sharp bogeyed her final hole to drop into a tie for second at 9 under with South Korean players In Gee Chun, So Yeon Ryu and Q Baek. They all shot 67.

“We just finished major tournament last week and the golf course was quite narrow and a really, really tough golf course,” Ryu said about the KPMG Women’s PGA last week outside Seattle. “We really had to deal with all the trees. After last week, this golf course feels more wide open, I feel more comfortable, felt like be able to play more aggressive.”

Thompson won the Honda LPGA Thailand in February for her seventh LPGA Tour title. The long-hitting Florida player, ranked fourth in the world, also won a Japan LPGA event last month. The back pain could be a major concern heading into the busy summer schedule and golf’s return to the Olympics.

“I just try not to pay attention to it,” Thompson said. “It was hurting just getting into posture for my golf shot, so it is what it is. Took a few ibuprofens and waited for it to kick in. I didn’t really want to pay attention to how bad it was hurting because then it brings more attention to it and it becomes a mind game. I just tried not to focus on it and I just tried to stick to what I did yesterday.”

The 35-year-old Sharp is winless on the LPGA Tour, with six top-10 finishes in 11 seasons.

“I’m going to just keep playing my game, hit fairways and go at pins when I can,” Sharp said. “My putting has been really good the last two tournaments, so I’m kind of relying on it.”

Amy Yang (67) was 8 under along with Sei Young Kim (69), Minjee Lee (67), Haru Nomura (67), Jodi Ewart Shadoff (68), Amelia Lewis (68) and Carlota Ciganda (69).

Top-ranked Lydia Ko and No. 2 Brooke Henderson, coming off a playoff victory over Ko in the KPMG Women’s PGA, were together at 7 under after matching rounds of 68.

Ko birdied three of her last five holes. The 19-year-old New Zealander won the Kia Classic and major ANA Inspiration in consecutive weeks this year in Southern California. She has 12 LPGA Tour victories.

“I’m happy with the way I played,” Ko said. “I was pretty consistent and I just got to keep playing like this. My ball striking wasn’t as good as yesterday, so hopefully it can get better progressively on the weekend.”

Henderson played her final nine holes in 4 under. The 18-year-old Canadian, up to No. 2 in the world, has 10 top-10 finishes this season. She also won last year in Portland, Oregon.

“It was much warmer out today, a beautiful day,” Henderson said. “I started out not as well as I would have liked, 1 over for the front nine, but I made a lot of birdies on the back and go 4 under, so overall it was a pretty steady day. I know I have some work to do on the weekend, but I’m looking forward to it.”

Ariya Jutanugarn, third last week after winning her previous three starts, was 5 under after a 69. Older sister Moriya also was 5 under after a 68.

Laura Davies, the 52-year-old World Golf Hall of Fame member who shot a 65 on Thursday to share the lead, had a 73 to drop to 4 under. She won the last of her 20 LPGA Tour titles in 2001.

Maude-Aimée Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., shot 2-under on the day to take a share of 39th.

Michelle Wie made the cut by a stroke at 1 under, following her opening 71 with a 70. She’s winless since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open and hasn’t had a top-10 finish in 37 events.