Playa del Carmen, Mexico-Jenny Bae started with three straight Birdies and had a one-off lead that could have been bigger, except a soft finish on Saturday in the Mexico Riviera Maya.
Bae did not make another Birdie after the third gap. What stopped her was to settle for pars with easily scoring holes, and then close with a bogey when the hair cost two shots to get out of the ground coral to the left of the green on the par-5 18th.
Bae was on 7-under 209 and the LPGA-smokie is confronted with a large test Sunday-samen with just about everyone else who chases her to offer her first LPGA victory.
“I didn’t finish as well as I wanted, but that’s ok,” said Bae. “Just tells me that I have to fight the last 18 holes more.”
The El Camaleon course in Mayakoba was founded to score, with the T-pieces up on the Par-4 17th to make it accessible with a Fairway metal and the PAR-5 closing hole.
Yahui Zhang of China finished Birdie-Birdie for a 68 and was 6-under 210, together with Chisato Iwai from Japan, who also the last two holes birds.
Another shot back was Gabriela Ruffels from Australia, who had the strongest last kick of all. Ruffels was 3 for her round when she hollow a 15-foot Birdie putt on the 14th hole. On the Par-4 16th, the heaviest on the rear nine, she threw a 20-feet Birdie Putt.
Ruffels left her tee shot just before the green on the 17th, threw about 4 feet for Birdie on a rear pin, and then made it three right at the end with a birdie on the 18th. That enabled her to save a 71 and left her very much in the mix.
“I was just proud of the way I held a little there and had the feeling that I gave myself the chance to come back a little,” said Ruffels. “It’s really good to complete the way I did it and some momentum in tomorrow.”
Miranda Wang of China was also strongly ending, even if it were to keep her head above water. She was five shots behind when Wang to the left started to miss – a tee shot into the bushes on the 16th that led to a penalty shot, a Tee shot on the 17th in the water to the left of the Green.
Both times Wang made 15-foot puts to save par, and after pulling her approach to the left of the 18th Green, she got that up and down for Birdie for a 73. She was among the seven players at 4-year 212, three shots from the lead.
Bae was happy to be in front, although she missed a chance to have more room for mistakes. She missed a 6-foot Birdie putt on the par-5 13th. She was in a good position of the 17th, just behind the green, but her field was strong and too far right and rolled on to the collar. She had to settle for par.
On the 18th she pulled her approach in a piece of crushed coral to a short -sided pen. She did not catch enough of the golf ball and left it in the sand area, then caught all the ball and sent it 25 feet past the pen on the collar. Two putts from there led to Bogey.
“I feel that I have certainly left a few Birdies there, but it’s ok because I know that the opportunities I missed today can also be the birdies that I get tomorrow,” said Bae.
Maddie Szeryk (76) van London, Ont., Was on 4-over 220.
This is the last week before the US Women’s open, and the return from the LPGA to Mexico for the first time since 2017 did not put on a strong field with Charley Hull at number 15, the highest ranked player.
But it’s a great opportunity for everyone. The top 11 players on the Leaderboard – everyone at 4 and better – go for their first LPGA victory.
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