Following her impressive runner-up finish at the Dana Open, LPGA Tour sophomore Haeran Ryu is once again at the top of the leaderboard.
This time, she carries a slender one-stroke lead into the final round of the CPKC Women’s Open.
Ryu delivered an outstanding 8-under 64 on Saturday, marking the second-best round of the week at Earl Grey Golf Club.
This exceptional performance saw her leapfrog America’s Lauren Coughlin, who began the third round with a narrow lead over the South Korean golfer.
This marks the second time Ryu has held a 54-hole lead or co-lead in a 72-hole tournament on the LPGA Tour, the first being at The Chevron Championship earlier this season, where she finished fifth.
“I think because really good finish in the final round last week, I have more confidence for my everything for the golf,” said Ryu, who has accumulated seven top-10 finishes this season, more than anyone else on the Tour without a win.
“Now, I just trust myself and really good score (today), I keep going, I think.”
Starting her round later in the day amidst a flurry of low scores, Ryu capitalized on the favourable conditions.
She quickly gained momentum, sinking four consecutive one-putts to go 4-under through her first four holes, moving to 9-under overall. Another birdie on the par-4 6th hole saw her climb to 10-under.
Meanwhile, Coughlin was also on the attack, carding four birdies in her first six holes before a bogey on the seventh.
A birdie on the ninth hole saw her make the turn in 31. Ryu finished her front nine with three pars, turning in 30, tying with Coughlin at 10-under as they headed to the back nine.
“Every round, I just think about, ‘okay, today I hit under-par scores. That is good thing.’ But start five holes (with birdie), oh, I’m crazy,” Ryu laughed.
“Today, weather is much better than yesterday, and every hole’s pin location is almost same as a couple of days ago.
I want to try to same as yesterday, but I think really good start, that’s a good thing, I think.”
Both players birdied the 10th and bogeyed the 12th, remaining tied as they approached the 13th tee box.
Here, Ryu made a decisive move, sticking her second shot within 10 feet and sinking another one-putt for birdie to take a one-stroke lead with five holes to play.
Ryu then extended her lead to three strokes with a sensational 20-foot eagle putt on the 14th, igniting cheers from the Canadian crowd.
However, Coughlin stayed composed, making a birdie on the 14th and another on the 17th, finishing the day just one shot behind Ryu, who closed with four straight pars.
“(I) hung in there for sure. (Haeran) was making everything there to start, so I was just trying to stay in my own bubble and not get too into what she was doing as well, which was hard when she’s playing as good as she was,” said Coughlin about her third round.
“Again, I felt like I hung in there and was able to go blow for blow pretty much most of the day.”
After two days of challenging conditions at Earl Grey Golf Club, Japanese rookie Mao Saigo shattered the mould on Moving Day with an incredible bogey-free, 11-under 61, breaking the 18-hole tournament scoring record that had stood since 2009.
Starting the day tied for 46th and 3-over overall, Saigo’s performance included a remarkable 9-under stretch from holes eight to 17, ultimately finishing her round with the clubhouse lead.
By the end of the third round, Saigo was tied for third alongside Rose Zhang.
