Leona Maguire could not take advantage of a hot start and carded a one-under 71 to trail two-time champion Jiyai Shin by seven shots heading into the final round of the AIG Women’s Open at St Andrews.
As overnight leader Nelly Korda carded a 75 to slip to third, two shots off the lead on five-under, Korean star Shin (36) made seven birdies a five-under 67 to head defending champion Lilia Vu by a shot on seven-under.
Seven of the last eight champions have held the lead, or joint lead, going into the final round.
“This is my third time at St Andrews,”Shin said. “I have a lot of experience with links courses so that’s why I took all my skill today. I just keep focused forward.”
Maguire ended the day tied for 19th on level par after she went out in three-under 33 on the Old Course only to come home in two-over 38.
The Ballyconnell native (29) is just four shots outside the top five, but she will need a special final round to have a chance.
She looked on course to make a significant move when she birdied the sixth, seventh and eighth to briefly get to within a shot of the top ten on two-under.
But she bogeyed the demanding par three 11th and while she birdied the 12th, she made back-to-back bogeys at the 13th and 14th to leave herself needing a sensational Sunday to challenge the leaders
Former world number one Shin, who captured the title in 2008 and 2012 before giving up her LPGA card in 2014 to play in Japan and be nearer her family, went into the third round tied for 11th, six strokes behind world number one Korda.
She turned in four-under 32 to get to six-under before coming home in one under, racking up seven birdies to take the slimmest of leads into the final round.
Defending champion Vu is lurking ominously just a shot off the pace as she birdied three of her last five holes en route to a rollercoaster 71.
“I came into the week with a good mindset that it’s a new week,” Vu said. “Just going to show up the same way I do every single week. Trying to play my best and beat the golf course.”
As for Korda, the world number one bogeyed her first two holes before recovering with birdies at the third, fifth and ninth.
But the Florida star suffered on the back nine, making bogeys at the 12th, 13th and 17th and a double bogey at the 16th before closing with a birdie three for her 75.
“I’m going to keep a positive attitude,” Korda said. “Take it one shot at a time. I played really well the first two days, so I’m going to take that momentum into tomorrow.”
Another South Korean, Jenny Shin, shot 70 and Olympic champion Lydia Ko a 71 to lie just three shots off the lead in a tie for fourth place on four-under.
“I’m just going to stick to the same game plan,” Ko said. “I’m not entirely sure what the weather is going to be like and I think that’s really the biggest factor around this golf course.”
American Alexa Pano, Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul, Korea’s Jinhee Im and China’s Ruoning Yin share sixth on three-under.
England’s Charley Hull also had a poor day, racking up a triple bogey eight at the fifth as she carded a three-over 75 to slip back to tied 10th on two-under alongside Scottish amateur Lottie Woad, Japan’s Mao Saigo, South Africa’s Casandra Alexander, and two players who shot 66 early in the day, Switzerland’s Albane Valenzuela and Olympic silver medalist Esther Henseleit.
Meanwhile, Tom McKibbin failed to build on a sensational start and carded a four-under 67 to trail leader Lucas Bjerregaard by seven shots heading into the final round of the Danish Golf Championship.
Starting on the back nine at Lubker Golf Resort, the Newtownabbey star (21) eagled the par-five 10th and birdied the 11th, 12th and 14th to go five-under for the day.
But he struggled on his back nine, sandwiching birdies at the second and eighth between bogeys at the third, fourth and sixth to share 17th on five-under.
Bjerregaard, who is seeking his first DP World Tour title for nearly six years, took a two-stroke lead into the final round as he bids to return to the DP World Tour after losing his card in 2022.
The 33-year-old held a two-stroke lead on seven under par after completing the remaining ten holes of his delayed second round in five under to post an impressive 65.
He then shot a five-under 66 to lead by two shots from France’s Romain Langasque on 12-under.
“I don’t have very good status on the Challenge Tour, so I’ve been playing on invites, top tens and so on,” Bjerregaard said.
“I haven’t been able to plan very much, so it’s been one day at a time, one tournament at a time. That’s what’s been working well for me and I’ll try and do that again tomorrow.”
Danish amateur Jacob Skov Olesen, who became the first Danish winner of the Amateur Championship at Ballyliffin this summer, is just three shots off the lead after a 66.
Olesen (25) is bidding to become the first amateur to win on the DP World Tour since Shane Lowry captured the 2009 Irish Open at Baltray.