Nine straight birdies to open her round. Yeah, you read that right. Lauren Coughlin absolutely lit up the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship on Saturday, kicking off her second round at Pinnacle Country Club in a way nobody in LPGA history ever has. This wasn’t just a hot start, she was on fire, making history with every single shot.
A Historic Back-Nine Blister, Then a Cool Down
Man, talk about a run! Coughlin, an LPGA Tour veteran, rolled out to the back nine and *could not miss*, sinking birdie after birdie for an unbelievable nine straight. We’re talking a first in LPGA history here, people. Her insane 9-hole score of 26? That’s also a record for the lowest 9-hole raw score ever on the LPGA Tour. For a minute there, it felt like she was gonna do the impossible, right? She actually had a shot at cracking Annika Sorenstam’s legendary single-round record of 59, which Sorenstam set all the way back in 2001. Imagine that!
But even the hottest streaks have to settle down a bit, and when she hit the front nine, things cooled off, relatively speaking. She bagged one more birdie on No. 3, but that was it for the day. The good news? No bogeys whatsoever! She “settled” for a 10-under 61 for the day. And hey, for anyone else, a 61 is an absolutely stellar round, but after watching that back-nine firestorm, it felt like a soft landing.
Leaderboard Rocket and What It Means for Her Season
Even with the cool down, that 61 was pure magic for Coughlin. She started the day after a tough 2-over in the first round, and that Saturday performance rocketed her up a massive 106 places on the leaderboard. She’s now tied for 21st place at 8-under, which is a huge move! She was straight money out there, hitting 12 out of 13 fairways and crushing it with 18 of 18 greens in regulation. Her 26 total putts show just how locked in she was.
So, where does that put her? Yuna Nishimura is currently leading the pack, five strokes ahead at 16-under. Nishimura was no slouch herself, carding a 63 on Saturday to put some real distance between her and the chasing trio of Auston Kim, Mary Liu, and Michelle Zhang, who are all tied for second at 11-under. Coughlin’s incredible round happened the day before her 34th birthday, which is a pretty epic way to celebrate early! She’s been on the Tour since 2017, already has three tournament wins under her belt, including the Aramco Championship in April, and she was a beast for Team USA in the Solheim Cup loss this year, playing all five sessions and putting up a solid 3-1-1 record.
Can Coughlin keep that fire going? She needs to replicate some of that Saturday magic if she wants a shot at Nishimura. What an absolute roller coaster of a day, and you know everyone will be watching to see if she can climb even higher!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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