Thursday was a day for scoring at the Buick LPGA Classic. Friday was about survival.
The wind picked up and the golf course showed its teeth as the first stop of the LPGA’s late-season Asian swing reached its midpoint. Hye-Jin Choi managed the conditions well enough to maintain a two-shot lead in her pursuit of a first LPGA title to go with the dozen she has won in South Korea.
Grace Kim was happy just to hang around.
The Australian major champion did exactly that, highlighted by a hole-out birdie at the 15th. Kim battled her way to an even-par 72, leaving her at 4 under and just two shots off the lead heading into the weekend.
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“This is a beast of a golf course,” Kim said. “And with the wind picking up today, like, I just had to play as patient as possible. You know, we had a bit of gusts here and there and a few waits as well, so I feel like the momentum kind of kept getting stopped.”
More: LPGA embarks on 4 week Asian swing without world’s No. 1 player
The wind did more than send scores climbing. It changed the way players had to approach a course that already had plenty of length.
“I think the wind picking up definitely made a huge difference,” Kim said. “A couple of tees were up today, but the long holes, the holes that were already long, made it even longer with the wind strength. So having 3-wood into 18, I’ve never been so nervous, I think, this week. So things like that. I think make sure that you really try to stay in it and stay present.”
For Kim, the test felt familiar. She owns two LPGA victories, including the 2025 Evian Championship, and said Friday’s conditions gave the week the feel of another major championship.
“Yes, definitely. I can tell you that for sure,” Kim said. “Obviously there is a history of the men playing and I think it definitely suits the men a little bit more than us. But we are always up for a challenge, so, yeah, I guess we’re just going to have to stick it out for the weekend.”
The week started with 81 players but there have been four withdrawals. Through 36 holes, only nine golfers are under par. Of the 147 rounds posted so far over two days, there have been 12 scores in the 80s and just 12 in the 60s.
Shanghai is only the beginning of the LPGA’s four-week Asian swing. After China, the tour moves to South Korea, Malaysia and Japan over the next three weeks.
Tim Schmitt is the managing editor of Golfweek and the golf coordinator for the USA Today Network.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Grace Kim hangs around, Hye-Jin Choi holds lead as wind batters LPGA field