Lydia Ko has had a tough day at the office in the second round of the Chevron Championship at Mission Hills. 

Ko, who kicked off the first major of the year yesterday with her best ever start to one of her favourite tournaments, fell back down the leaderboard after carding a one-over 73 on day two. 

The Kiwi world No 3 started well with two birdies in the first seven holes and looked to be in the mix once again. 

But things slowly started going downhill as she bogeyed the par 3 8th, followed by three more in the back nine and just one birdie – the blemish on the last hole where she missed a close par putt epitomising her struggles in almost all facets of her game. 

It was a rare off day for the former world number one who has started her season with a tournament win in January and several strong finishes, before missing a couple of events due to Covid-19. 

To fight back into contention, Ko will need to start by fixing her driving off the tee, which plagued her second day. 

She only managed to hit five out of 14 fairways and also didn't have the best time with her putter. 

Ko sits in a tie for 16th, six shots behind Japan's Hinako Shubuno, with several players still yet to tee off. 

American Annie Park and defending champion Patty Tavatanakit of Thailand are in a tie for second at eight under.