Yealimi Noh took a three-shot lead into the final round of the AIG Women's Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes after carding a two-under 69 in Saturday's third round. The American golfer reached seven under par overall as she chases her maiden major championship title.
If Noh secures victory on Sunday, she will become the first American player to make the AIG Women's Open her maiden major title since Mo Martin won the tournament in 2014. Noh began the weekend two strokes off the lead and dropped further back after making two bogeys in her opening five holes.
A birdie surge around the turn transformed her round, with Noh posting three consecutive birdies starting at the ninth hole to move into a tie for the lead. She later sank a five-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole to establish a two-stroke advantage before stretching her cushion to three strokes.
"It was a little bit of a rocky start, but my putting was solid and my shots too," Noh told Sky Sports. "I just settled into a better routine and focused on my tempo on the back nine. I'm just happy to be in this position and ready to go again."
Haeran Ryu third round stumble
Halfway leader Haeran Ryu surrendered her advantage after carding an erratic three-over 74 containing five bogeys over an eight-hole stretch. Ryu entered Saturday one shot ahead of Shiho Kuwaki in search of her third consecutive major win, having already won the KPMG Women's PGA Championship and the Amundi Evian Championship this season.
Ryu initially extended her lead to four shots with back-to-back birdies at the third hole after Kuwaki bogeyed. Both players bogeyed the par-three fourth hole, but Ryu restored her four-stroke lead by making birdie on the par-five fifth.
Ryu's round began to unravel at the par-five seventh hole when a wayward tee shot forced her to take an unplayable lie in the rough. She scrambled a bogey before dropping another shot at the eighth hole, allowing Kuwaki to move within one shot after birdies at the seventh and ninth.
The overnight leader lost her remaining margin at the par-four 10th hole, where she required two shots to escape the sand and carded a bogey. That created a three-way tie at the top alongside Kuwaki and Noh, before Ryu suffered additional bogeys at the 12th and 14th holes.
Leaderboard and major contenders
Kuwaki also stumbled late in her round, failing to save par at the 15th hole and bogeying the 17th to drop back. Ryu and Kuwaki ended the day tied for second place at four under par alongside Jeeno Thitkul and Lucy Li.
World No 1 Nelly Korda finished eight shots off the lead at one over par after closing her round with a double-bogey on the 18th hole. German golfer Esther Henseleit posted five birdies in her first 10 holes before bogeying the 15th hole.
Henseleit needs a solo second finish or better to pass Chiara Tamburlini on the Ladies European Tour list for Solheim Cup qualification, though she is already set to qualify via her world ranking. Tamburlini faces a wait over her Solheim Cup spot.
In another notable third-round moment, Lydia Ko saw her second shot on the seventh hole take an awkward bounce and land inside the coat of a spectator seated along the fairway.
Lottie Woad and Charley Hull in contention
English amateur Lottie Woad remains four shots behind Noh at three under par after mixing three birdies with two bogeys. Woad sank a 50-foot birdie putt early in her third round as she pursues a maiden major title, and she can also surpass Tamburlini on the Ladies European Tour list with a solo third finish or better.
"It's a good position to be in," Woad told Sky Sports. "I should be a few back. I'll stick to my game plan and see what happens. I felt a bit better on the greens today and I scrambled pretty well to get around."
Charley Hull sits one shot further back at two under par following an even-par 71. Hull, a two-time runner-up at the AIG Women's Open in the past three years, fell 10 shots behind after making three bogeys in her opening six holes.
The English golfer recovered with back-to-back birdies on the seventh and eighth holes before bogeying the 10th. She then mounted a late rally with consecutive birdies on the 15th and 16th holes.
"I'm pretty proud as the first six holes I played like a 10-handicapper, I felt," Hull told Sky Sports. "I missed three putts I should have holed from five feet and in, which would have kept me level par instead of being three over."
"I had a bit of a bounce back and I was pretty happy with the way I finished," Hull added. "I was looking at leaderboards - there's not many out on the golf course, so it's quite hard to see where you're at - and I do like to have a sneaky look."
The final round of the AIG Women's Open takes place on Sunday, with live coverage starting from midday on Sky Sports Golf.