Two-time Champion Jiyai Shin of Korea fired a 5-under-par 67 to bolt past 36-hole leader and world number 1 Nelly Korda to gain the lead after three rounds of the AIG Women’s Open at the Old Course, St Andrews.
Shin’s three-round total of 7-under gave her a one stroke lead over Lilia Vu, the reigning Champion playing in the day’s final group with Korda, who posted a 1-under-par 71.
Korda, who began her round with a three-stroke edge over Vu and 2023 runner-up Charley Hull, lost her lead on the incoming nine. She lost strokes with bogeys on the 12th, 13th and 17th holes and a double bogey at the 16th but birdied the 18th to fall two strokes shy of Shin.
Korda, who has won six times on the LPGA Tour this season, including the Chevron Championship, finished the day with a 3-over-par 75.
“It's nice to finish with a birdie, but it wasn't the best of days,” Korda said.
With a brilliant 20-degree hybrid approach shot from 205 yards on the 17th hole that ended two feet from the flag and the ensuing birdie putt, Shin of Korea, moved to 7-under par to tie Korda (at the time).
“Well, I just couldn't see where the ball finished because of my height,” said Shin, who won in 2008 and 2012. “I couldn't see it. I can hear a lot of clapping, but I couldn't see where it finished, and then my thought was, okay, just make the green, and then when I come up to 17, like to the hole, like wow, so close.”
Vu, who started her back nine with bogeys on the 12th and 13th, rebounded with birdies on the 16th and 18th and a critical par on the 17th.
“The wheels were falling off in the middle of it,” said Vu, who is ranked number two in the world. “I was getting anxious but my caddie was able to give me words of encouragement that I'm playing well. It's just a couple bad breaks.”
Olympic gold medalist Lydia Ko of Australia is three strokes behind Shin with Jenny Shin of Korea.
Ko knows that the Championship leader is a former world number 1 and now plays most of her golf in Japan and that this is her third Women’s Open at St Andrews.
“What she's done is amazing,” Ko said of Shin. “She played in Korea and then came over here as world No. 1, went back to Japan, dominated there. I don't know if there's a single place on Planet Earth that she has not dominated in, which is pretty crazy to say.”
Alexa Pano, who turned 20 on August 20, made a marginal move up the leaderboard with a 3-under 69 to stay within striking distance, four strokes off the pace with Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand, Jinhee In of Korea and Ruoning Yin of China.
“I don't think you can really get too aggressive on this golf course,” Pano said. “You're going have to take a lot of the bounces that it gives you and play smart most of the time. There are a lot of shots out there I wish I could have been more aggressive with it but you have to take what the wind and golf course gives you. It requires a lot of focus on every shot. So, I think I'm just going to take it shot-by-shot like I have been the whole week.
Hull fell back to a 2-under total with her third-round 75.
)
)
)
)
