Friday sets up as day of LPGA drama at Shadow Creek

Two days of round-robin play have done nothing to whittle down the potential players to move on to the weekend’s knockout rounds for two of the pods at the T-Mobile Match Play.

Lydia Ko, Carlota Ciganda, Gabriela Ruffels and Hira Naveed in group three are all 1-1 after two days of play at the LPGA event. The same is true in group 13, where Lauren Coughlin, Ina Yoon, Mi Hyang Lee and Lucy Li all stand 1-1.

That sets up a final day of win-or-go-home for everyone in those groups Friday, with Ko and Ciganda facing off in the highlight match. It will be one of mutual respect.

“She’s so good with her hybrids, her irons, putting, everything,” Ciganda said. “She’s such a complete player that I know it’s going to be a tough match.”

Ko said the challenge will be keeping up with Ciganda, who is much longer off the tee.

“I’m sure she’s going to hit much shorter clubs into the greens than me, which could be an advantage,” Ko said. “But I’ve just got to focus on my golf, and that’s what I did really well today. I feel like as long as I’m playing good I’m going to have a good shot at it.”

Li feels she has as good a chance as anybody to emerge from her group after holding off Yoon on Thursday.

“There is so much golf left to be played, and this course is so tough,” the rising American player said. “You have to keep your head down and just focus on every shot. If you’re up or if you’re down, it’s the same, so just trust the process.”

While those two pods are anybody’s guess, group nine is down to just two players. Maja Stark and Hyo Joo Kim will face off Friday in the only match featuring two players with 2-0 records, effectively turning it into the start of the knockout rounds.

That’s just fine with Stark.

“It’s not going to affect the strategy at all,” Stark said after her 3-and-2 victory over Bailey Tardy. “You don’t get very many birdie opportunities out there. It just feels like you’re holding on for dear life the whole time.”

Kim and Stark are among a dozen players in the field to get through the first two rounds unscathed. It’s a list that includes heavyweights Jeeno Thitikul, Brooke Henderson, Celine Boutier and Ariya Jutanugarn.

Henderson has yet to see beyond the 14th hole at Shadow Creek, following up a dominant 6-and-5 win on Wednesday with a 5-and-4 rout of Peiyun Chien on Thursday.

And while Jutanugarn is 2-0, she must get by defending champion and world No. 1 Nelly Korda on Friday if she hopes to play on the weekend. Korda (1-0-1) stumbled down the stretch but still managed to hold off Jennifer Kupcho 1-up on Thursday.

“Very questionable by me,” she said of some of her shots on the back nine. “Definitely don’t have my best stuff right now.”

Neither does Las Vegas star Rose Zhang, who conceded her match to Albane Valenzuela after four holes Thursday one day after complaining of neck pain.

Whether she returns Friday is up in the air and adds some drama into her group, which also includes Megan Khang and Nataliya Guseva. After two days, it’s Guseva who controls her own destiny with a 1-0-1 record.

That fact won’t add any pressure on the 22-year-old, she said.

“I think golf is about having fun, and when you make it more difficult, it makes you think miserable out there,” Guseva said. “I don’t want to have that feeling. I just will to keep it easy and make it fun.”

Shadow Creek will have a big say in how fun Friday turns out to be.

Greg Robertson covers golf for the Review-Journal. Reach him at grobertson@reviewjournal.com