Through 36 holes at the sweltering Honda LPGA Thailand, Madelene Sagstrom of Sweden holds a share of the lead at 10-under alongside Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit and South Korea’s Sei Young Kim.
Sagstrom and Tavatanakit each shot 5-under 67s on Friday, the second straight day they carded these scores. Kim, meanwhile, signed for a 4-under 68 after opening with a 6-under 66 on Thursday.
The 31-year-old Sagstrom charged up the leaderboard on the front nine, making five birdies and one bogey to go out in 32. She then birdied the par-5 10th, which got her to 5-under on the day.
Then, the heat started to get to her. Sagstrom, who played alongside Ludvig Åberg at the Grant Thornton Invitational in December, grinded her way through her last eight holes, finishing with eight straight pars.
“I think I got really tired,” Sagstrom said of her back-nine.
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“I was just trying to hold on for dear life. Not necessarily. There are some tricky pins out there, but the heat should get to all of us. I think it’s just trying to really stay in it. I felt like, okay, focus now. You’re about to really fall apart if you don’t do anything good. I’m happy that I kept it together in the end.
This week marks Sagstrom’s second event of the LPGA season, as she tied for 42nd at the LPGA Drive On Championship in January, which Nelly Korda won in an epic playoff.
Sagstrom has not won since 2020, when she triumphed at the Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio. That remains her lone LPGA win to date.
And yet, despite the heat and humidity, the big-hitting Swede feels confident in her game going into the weekend.
“I can make birdies,” Sagstrom said. “I’ve been [to this golf course] many times. You have to make birdies out here to play well. You have to go low.”
“Today, I bogeyed three and tried not to let those things get to me. Knowing I can make birdies out here is really nice. I am trying to take advantage of the par-5s. They’re set up fairly straightforward, all of them. I think my length helps on 1 and 10, and then just trying to take as much advantage of that as possible.”
Thus far, Sagstrom has shot 6-under on the par-5s this week, which helps explain why she holds a share of the lead.
Tavatanakit, meanwhile, has only played the four longest holes in 4-under, but her game is in a great spot right now.
Last week, Tavatanakit dominated on the Ladies European Tour, winning the Armaco Saudi Ladies International by seven shots. That, too, was a hot environment, but she prevailed with ease.
She then took a 7-hour flight to Bangkok, where this week’s LPGA event awaited the 24-year-old Thai. Still, despite the jet lag and the near 100-degree temperatures, her solid play has traveled with her.
But understandably, after 36 holes, she is feeling quite weary.
“I feel a little bit more fatigue coming off a strong play last week,” Tavatanakit said after her round.
“It’s only Friday, and it’s really hot, and my body feels like it needs a lot of rest, so I’m going to go ahead and do that. I am sure the golf will just take care of itself.”
Of these three players tied at the top, nobody has more career victories than Kim, who has won a dozen times on the LPGA Tour.
And yet, like Sagstrom, she has not prevailed since 2020.
Still, Kim, who has not played her best this week, gets to see her name atop the leaderboard at the midway point.
“I still have a chance. Yeah, still have a chance,” Kim said.
“I don’t want to think about the result too much, but sometimes even that thinking bothers me, so I just want to enjoy the weekend and then a lot of fans out there, especially Asia, so, yeah, it’s fun to do.”
A bevy of players sit within a few shots of the leaders, including Leona Maguire and Danielle Kang, who are at 7-under. Overall, 29 players are within five shots of the lead, and considering the birdie opportunities this course presents and the heat, this tournament is anyone’s for the taking.
It should be a fun final 36 holes in Thailand.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
