Yamashita struggles and sees her Women’s British Open lead shrink to 1 shot over Kim
PORTHCAWL, Wales (AP) — Miyu Yamashita was crooked off the tee and struggled on the greens, a rough combination that led to a hard-fought round of 2-over 74 on Saturday that shrunk her lead to one shot over A Lim Kim in the Women’s British Open.
Yamashita, who led by three shots going into the third round, did not hit a fairway over the last 11 holes and still managed to stay in front at Royal Porthcawl, though it wasn’t easy.
She was on the verge of losing the lead on the 17th when she blasted out of a pot bunker all the way across the green to the fringe, some 40 feet away. She holed that putt for par, and then missed a birdie chance from just inside 6 feet on the par-5 closing hole.
That put Yamashita — who turned 24 on Saturday — at 9-under 207.
“Today I’ll be just looking at what went wrong and what went right and analyzing the day and make the improvements that hopefully will lead to a better round tomorrow,” Yamashita said.
Kim put on a fabulous display as the wind got stronger with a 5-under 67. She had a chance to tie for the lead when she hit a 335-yard drive on the 18th hole with a helping wind and fast links turf. She went just long, used her putter from off the green and took three putts for par.
Even so, it puts her in the final group with Yamashita as Lim goes for her second major, having won the U.S. Women’s Open in 2020 in Houston without fans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Honestly I’m not focused on the leader. I focus on my process and my shot and then my position,” Kim said.
And it’s not just Kim with a chance.
Yamashita’s struggles brought several possibilities in the final round, including the always entertaining Charley Hull of England. She shot a 66, going from 11 shots behind to within three shots of the lead as Hull goes for her first major.
“I just kind of enjoy chasing,” Hull said of playing from behind. “It’s more fun that way.”
Andrea Lee had a 67 and was two shots behind, followed by Hull, Megan Khang (68), Rio Takeda (74) and Minami Katsu, whose 65 matched the low score of the tournament.
“I think there will be a little bit of extra pressure on whoever is the 54-hole leader,” Lee said. “Tomorrow is going to be pretty tough. Anything can happen out there. I think anyone within five shots has a chance at this championship honestly, so I’m just going to try and keep my head down and stick to my own game plan and try not to look at the leaderboard.”
The Women’s British Open had the look of a Japanese duel, with Yamashita three shots ahead of Takeda and no one else closer than seven shots. But it was a struggle for Yamashita early with her putting, and then one of the straightest drivers lost her way.
She steadied herself with an approach — from the rough, of course — into 3 feet for birdie on No. 11, and a tee shot that settled 3 feet away for another birdie on the par-3 12th.
But playing out of the fescue caught up with her, and except for that 40-foot par putt on the 17th to keep her in the lead, it was a struggle to get done with the round.
Takeda wasn’t much better, with two bogeys in four holes at the start and two more bogeys over the final five holes.
Lottie Woad, the rising English star who won last week in her professional debut, birdied the last hole for a 71 and wound up six shots behind.
Nelly Korda, the No. 1 player in women’s golf, is likely to end the major championship season without a title. She shot 74 and fell nine shots behind. Korda has gone 13 tournaments without winning and risks losing her No. 1 ranking to Jeeno Thitikul depending on the final round.
The LPGA Tour already is off to a historic start by not having a multiple winner through 19 tournaments, a streak that could continue. Only Kim and Takeda from the top 10 on the leaderboard have won this year.
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