Alison Lee of Valencia did her best to steal the show on the day Se Ri Pak said goodbye.
The 21-year-old Lee, who played at UCLA, shot 7-under-par 65 to take a three-stroke lead over five players in the LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship on the Ocean Course at Sky 72 Golf Club in Incheon, South Korea.
“I gave myself a lot of chances at birdie,” said Lee, who has been slowed by a shoulder injury this season. “Putting was definitely one of my strengths today. It’s definitely what helped me shoot 7-under. I made have a lot of good birdie putts. I think I only missed one or two putts inside 15 feet.
“(The injury) definitely, it hurt a lot, a huge portion of my mental game. I was struggling a lot on the golf course, not only because of my injury, but because I was scared. I was scared of the ball. I didn’t know where it was going to go. But I am very happy with where my game is now.”
Pak, 39, who is credited with starting the South Korean golf boom by winning 39 times as a pro including five majors, was honored by fans and her peers after playing her final round in 80 and then withdrawing from the tournament, as planned.
Lizette Salas of Azusa and USC made her only bogey on the first hole in a 68 and is tied for second with In-Kyung Kim of South Korea, Anna Nordqvist of Sweden, Karine Icher of France and Jeong Min Cho of South Korea.
Brittany Lang carded a 69 and is tied for seventh with Minjee Lee of Australia, Haru Nomura of Japan, Eun-Hee Ji of South Korea and Carlota Ciganda of Spain.
Defending champion Lexi Thompson totaled 70 and is in a tie for 12th that includes Brooke Henderson of Canada and Candie Kung of Taiwan and USC, while top-ranked Lydia Ko of South Korea struggled to a 75 and is tied for 63rd.
