New Zealand golfer Dame Lydia Ko.
Photo: Matthew Huang/Icon Sportswire / PHOTOSPORT
Dame Lydia Ko has shot her best ever round on the LPGA tour.
The 28-year-old New Zealander has grabbed the club house lead during the first round of the Ford Championship in Arizona, coming close to one of the greatest feats in golf.
One of the early starters at the Whirlwind Golf Club just outside Phoenix, Dame Lydia fired a blistering 12 under par 60, just shy of joining the magical 59 club.
It is her best single round score since joining the LPGA Tour as a professional in 2014, with her previous best a 10-under par 62.
“I don’t think I’ve ever actually started a round with four birdies, so it was nice to take advantage of the good start and continue that on my back nine as well,” Ko said after her round.
“The number 59 did cross my mind by the time I holed my birdie putt on 6 (her 15th hole of the day), but it wasn’t like the pressure was – like it wasn’t like I had a lot of pressure to break 60.
“It was just more like, ‘Oh, it’s really cool to be in this position’.”
She currently has a one-shot lead over her playing partner, the in-form South Korean Hyo Joo Kim, with the majority of the field to complete their rounds.
Starting on the tenth, Ko birdied her first four holes and then another two before the turn. She then added another six birdies on her finishing nine.
Ko has two top ten finishes so far this year.
Her last win was at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in March 2025.
The first major of the year, the Chevron Championship, is next month.
Just one woman has broken 60 on the LPGA Tour, Annika Sorenstam recorded a 13-under par 59 in 2001.