This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Avondale, La. • If Sueng-Yul Noh can hold on to the lead in the Zurich Classic, he'll do it front of fans who can appreciate how much bigger Noh's mission is than simply winning his first PGA Tour event.

Wearing yellow and black ribbons on his hat to honor victims of the April 16 South Korean ferry accident, Noh used a string of birdies late in his round Saturday to surge two strokes ahead of Keegan Bradley atop the leaderboard.

It is Noh's first career lead through three rounds on the tour, and comes in a city where sports — particularly the success of the NFL's Saints — became an uplifting force after Hurricane Katrina.

Noh finds himself representing a nation mourning the more than 300 dead or missing — many of them students — from the sinking of a ferry.

"Hopefully, I'll make all the Korean people happy," Noh said. "It was very sad news for the Korean ship, so hopefully another bogey-free round tomorrow, and hopefully good news for the Koreans."

Noh is the first player to complete 54 holes at the TPC Louisiana without a bogey. He shot a 7-under 65 to reach 18-under 198. No player has completed all four rounds on the course at better than 20 under, the score Billy Horschel posted last year, when he became the sixth player in the last nine years to secure his maiden PGA Tour triumph in New Orleans.

Noh will try to continue the trend when he tees off in the same group as Bradley, whose three career tour victories include a major in the 2011 PGA Championship.

LPGA Tour

In Daly City, Calif., Stacy Lewis matched 17-year-old playing partner Lydia Ko with birdies on Nos. 15 and 16 and added another on the 17th to take a one-stroke lead in the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic. The third-ranked Lewis and fourth-ranked Ko each shot 4-under 68 at Lake Merced. Lewis had a 10-under 206 total.