Date: February 22, 2015
Author: Blake & Hayes

NOTES: Ilhee Lee’s amazing week

 

Oh how Ilhee Lee must regret two hours of torture on Friday.

The effervescent Korean was outright leader by a shot after her first-round 68, then remarkably fired an 82 in her second round to effectively fall from contention.

In 19 holes from the fourth on Friday, Lee went nine over par. Outside that zone, she fired a more than credible 16 birdies and remarkably charged home to finish two under with weekend rounds of 69 and 71.

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Royal Melbourne's composite course took a heavy toll on the 156 players who teed it up in the Open, with a scoring average of almost 76 over the four rounds, or 75.995 to be precise.

The four par-five holes were the only holes to average under par.

The lowest round of the week was Ilhee Lee's opening 68 on Thursday. There were only five rounds in the 60s for the week, by Lee (twice), Ha Na Jang, Jenny Shin and Arija Jutanugarn.

Today only one player, American Jenny Shin, broke 70. Shin birdied the last two holes for a 69.

The toughest hole for the week was the par-four 15th, a simple-enough looking dogleg hole that averaged 4.39; the par-four ninth hole, averaging, 4.386, was the second-toughest.

The easiest hole was the par-five 14th, averaging 4.66 over the week.

Lydia Ko hit more greens in regulation than any other player in the field, 64 of 72, which tells you a lot about her method. The best putter was Katherine Hull, who averaged just 29.25 per round.

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The LPGA Tour moves to Thailand next week, with the five women's majors for this year still to be played.

Despite her No. 1 status, Lydia Ko has not yet won a major. We sense that this fact will not be in existence for too long!

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FACT: Only seven Australians made the cut. Minjee Lee was the top Aussie, tied for seventh, her best-finish on the LPGA Tour.