Bethesda, United States, June 26 (AFP\/APP):Chun In-gee will take a three-shot lead into the final round of the Women’s PGA Championship after battling to a three-over-par 75 in Saturday’s third round.<\/p>\n
The South Korean world number 33, who dominated play over the first two days to open up a six-shot lead at the halfway stage, found the going tougher on Saturday at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland.<\/p>\n
Although Chun led the field by as many as seven shots early in her round, she saw her advantage gradually shrink as she came down the stretch, with a bogey on the 15th and double-bogey on the 16th leaving her just three shots clear.<\/p>\n
Chun recovered from that late wobble with pars on the 17th and 18th holes to leave her on eight under for the tournament with a 54-hole aggregate 208.<\/p>\n
Chun’s round could have been worse had it not been for a superb recovery on the par-five 16th.<\/p>\n
After a wayward second shot bounced into deep rough beyond the cart path, Chun pulled her third shot into undergrowth on the opposite side of the fairway.<\/p>\n
She elected to take a penalty and replay the shot, but her fifth ended up in rough beyond the green.<\/p>\n
That left the very real possibility of a triple-bogey eight, but Chun got up-and-down in two to stop the bleeding with a double-bogey.<\/p>\n
Chun later put a positive spin on her challenging round, saying it should make for a competitive final round on Sunday.<\/p>\n
“I’m excited and looking forward to an exciting final round,” she said. <\/p>\n
“If it’s going to be too easy, then I feel it is boring. So I just want to enjoy another day tomorrow.<\/p>\n
“I just want to keep being positive. No matter where I am, I’m ready to make another good day or another good round if I can.”<\/p>\n
Chun’s nervy third round has left a clutch of players with grounds for optimism heading into the final round.<\/p>\n
Lexi Thompson and Koreans Choi Hye-jin and Kim Sei-young are in a three-way tie for second on five under 211.<\/p>\n
Thompson overcame an early stumble that included two bogeys in her opening four holes to shoot a two-under-par 70.<\/p>\n
A bogey-free back nine saw her move up the leaderboard with birdies on the 12th, 14th and 15th holes.<\/p>\n
Thompson attributed her form to the fact she no longer pays attention to the leaderboard during her rounds.<\/p>\n
“Looking at leaderboards does me no good, honestly, so really just focusing on my score, my shot at hand,” Thompson said. “That’s all I can do.”<\/p>\n
Choi also shot a two-under-par 70 while Kim finished with a one-under-par 71.
\nAustralia’s Hannah Green is alone in fifth place on the leaderboard on four under after her even-par 72.<\/p>\n
Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul had the day’s lowest score, shooting a four-under-par 68 that included six birdies.<\/p>\n
Atthaya is tied for sixth on three under alongside Canada’s Brooke Henderson and the USA’s Jennifer Chang and Jennifer Kupcho.<\/p>\n
Northern Ireland’s Stephanie Meadow and Australia’s Minjee Lee are six shots off the lead, tied for 10th on two under.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Bethesda, United States, June 26 (AFP\/APP):Chun In-gee will take a three-shot lead into the final round of the Women’s PGA Championship after battling to a three-over-par 75 in Saturday’s third round. The South Korean world number 33, who dominated play over the first two days […]<\/p>\n
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