Lydia Ko makes 10 birdies, ties course record and leads by 4 in Saudi Arabia

Lydia Ko tied a course record and will enter the final round of the Aramco Saudi Ladies International with a four-shot lead.

Ko had 10 birdies and one bogey in shooting 63 at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club. She stands at 16 under par, four shots clear of Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul, who shot 65 in Round 3.

“I played really solid today,” Ko told reporters after her round. “I missed a short putt for par on 3 and then went on a stretch of birdies. I gave myself a lot of good looks for birdie opportunities and I was rolling it well, so it was a good combination of everything, where I wasn’t making many mistakes. It was that kind of a round where I just kept putting myself in position, trying to play the best golf I can.

“I’ve got to keep playing aggressively. This is a course where you’ve seen players can play well so I’m just trying to make my share out there and see what happens.”

Overnight leader Alice Hewson shot 1-under 71 and slipped to solo-third, six shots behind Ko.

Thitikul currently leads the Ladies European Tour’s Race to the Costa del Sol and is in great position to lock up the title with two events remaining on the schedule.