Ariya to supplant Ko, first Thai to reach No. 1

Tuesday, 6 June 2017 00:02 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

AFP: Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn has seized the number one world ranking from New Zealand’s Lydia Ko with neither lifting a club in the LPGA ShopRite Classic - where Ryu So-Yeon missed the cut Saturday to cement the shift.

Ryu, ranked third in the world, had a chance to leapfrog Ariya by finishing third or better in the tournament in Galloway, New Jersey.

But she fired back-to-back rounds of three-over 74 to miss the second-round cut in the 54-hole tournament, where South Korea’s Kim In-Kyung and American Paula Creamer shared the 36-hole lead.

Ko will slip from the summit after 84 straight weeks at the top. She’s been ranked number one for 103 weeks overall.

Ariya becomes the 10th player to reach number one since the women’s rankings were introduced in 2006 and the first from Thailand.

Both Kim and Creamer signed for four-under par 67s.

Ariya Jutanugarn

Kim, seeking a fifth LPGA title and her first since a win in China in October had six birdies and two bogeys.

She closed out her round with back-to-back birdies and said she’s feeling “even stronger” after a winter spent rehabbing injuries suffered in a freak fall down some stairs.

She’s played just half a dozen tournaments in 2017, but says she has recovered well.

“This winter I didn’t have any break, I needed some time to get ready for the summer,” Kim said. “I’m really happy to get back.”

Creamer posted five birdies and a bogey, and kept her share of the lead with an up and down for par at her final hole, the ninth - where her second shot landed left of the green and she took an unplayable lie.

“I’ve only had one bogey in the last two days,” Creamer said. “I’ve missed just three greens today. I’ve given myself a lot of opportunities and I like playing a little tougher conditions.

“Today was definitely different wind than yesterday,” she added. “There were some good pins out there that we had to kind of think about a bit. I played solid. I hit some good putts that didn’t go in and made some good putts that went in.”

The leading duo were two strokes in front of two-time defending champion Anna Nordqvist of Sweden, South Korea’s Lee Jeong-Eun and Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn - playing as her sister Ariya takes the week off. Nordqvist carded an even par 71 and said she’d be aggressive on Sunday in seeking a third-straight title. “I feel like I’m hitting the shots I need to hit,” Nordqvist said. “(It’s) just a matter of making a few more putts.I have nothing to lose tomorrow. I obviously like this track, so I’m excited.”