Precise putting played a key role in Kim Hyo-joo's back-to-back victories on the LPGA Tour. Following last week's Fortinet Founders Cup, her razor-sharp play on the greens proved a powerful weapon again at this week's Ford Championship.
Kim topped the Ford Championship (total purse $2.25 million), which concluded Sunday at Whirlwind Golf Club (par 72) in Phoenix, Arizona, finishing two strokes ahead of Nelly Korda of the United States, who posted 26-under-par 262. Kim recorded just 110 total putts over four rounds — 27.5 per round — continuing her miserly putting. At last week's Founders Cup, she logged 109 total putts over four days, averaging 27.25 per round.
Her putting was particularly sharp during the first and third rounds of the Ford Championship, when she fired 61 in each. She needed only 24 and 25 putts in those rounds, respectively. During holes 10 through 13 in the third round, she went birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie to shave five strokes in a single stretch. Starting with a roughly 15-meter long-range putt on the par-4 10th hole, she followed with successful mid-range putts of approximately 5 meters and 3 meters. She sank putts like guided missiles regardless of distance. Kim leads the LPGA Tour this season in putts per green in regulation at 1.65.
By contrast, Korda — the runner-up for the second consecutive week — outpaced Kim in driving distance but fell short in putting precision. Korda recorded 123 total putts at the Founders Cup and 114 at the Ford Championship. At the Founders Cup, where she finished as runner-up by a single stroke, Korda took 14 more putts on the greens than Kim. She was effectively outclassed on the greens.
Kim's victories drew attention to her putter. She switched to L.A.B. Golf's Link 2.1 model starting at last week's Founders Cup. She reportedly tried it for the first time on-site at the tournament and liked it enough to make the change immediately. The Link 2.1 is a traditional blade-style putter with zero torque, meaning the face stays square at impact. What sets it apart from conventional blade-type zero-torque putters — which typically have the shaft inserted at the center of the head — is that its shaft is positioned at the heel. That is why it looks like a conventional putter rather than a zero-torque model from appearance alone. Players can set up without any awkwardness at address, as it feels no different from a traditional putter. The Link 2.1 also features an all-black color scheme from head to shaft to grip. "The color reduces glare and instills confidence," L.A.B. Golf explained. The model has not yet been released in South Korea and is expected to launch around the end of April.