Eagle on 17 increases Sei Young Kim’s LPGA South Korea lead to 4

HAENAM, South Korea — Sei Young Kim’s eagle on the 17th hole helped increase her lead to four strokes going into the final round of the BMW Ladies Championship after shooting a 3-under 69 on Saturday.

On a blustery, cloudy day at Pine Beach Golf Links on the Korean peninsula, Kim finished with a three-round total of 19-under 197 despite a bogey on the 18th.

Yealimi Noh (67) and Nasa Hataoka (69) were tied for second.

American Brooke Matthews, who had trailed Kim by a stroke after the second round, triple-bogeyed the par-3 15th and fell six strokes behind Kim and into a tie for fourth place after a 74.

Defending champion Hannah Green shot 68 and was at 11 under, eight strokes behind Kim and tied with fellow Australian Minjee Lee, who shot 71 on Saturday. Brooke Henderson also shot 71 and was nine strokes off the lead.

This is the first of consecutive LPGA tournaments in South Korea, with the International Crown team event scheduled for next week. After the International Crown, two more LPGA events are scheduled on the five-event Asian swing — at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and in Japan.