Ayaka Furue recorded birdies on her first two holes to take the lead Saturday at the HSBC Women’s World Championship and never relinquished it, shooting a 4-under-par 68 to grab first place after 54 holes in Singapore.
Furue’s 68 moved her to 10-under 206 for the tournament, two strokes ahead of Australia’s Hannah Green (67 on Saturday).
The leader heading into the third round, Celine Boutier of France shot a 72 and stands tied for third with Andrea Lee (67) at 7-under, three shots off the pace at The Tanjong Course at Sentosa Golf Club.
Furue, seeking her second LPGA Tour win, recorded four birdies on the front nine and played the back nine at even par.
“I just kind of keep my momentum going. So that’s really good for me,” Furue said of her front nine. “I just feel excited to be part of the top of the leaderboard. I was just thinking about catching up with Celine today and making birdies. I just feel good.”
Furue is projected to move to No. 1 on the Race to CME Globe points list with a victory.
Green vaulted from ninth place to second after her round of six birdies and a bogey on a day that reached the high 80s with winds upward of 20 mph.
“I didn’t really hit many greens again today or fairways, but I managed to miss it in the right areas to give myself the best chance to make par. That was important today, as not sure how the weather will be tomorrow,” said Green, who is seeking her fourth LPGA Tour victory.
“I knew I needed to make pars on certain holes and not be as aggressive and when I have wedge in my hand, try to go for the pin. My caddie and I do a good job of that. It can be tough. Even though I shot 5-under, it still felt like a lot of work compared to yesterday. Put myself in good position for tomorrow.”
Four players enter play Sunday tied for fifth place, four shots off the lead at 6-under: defending champion Jin Young Ko (66) and Hye-Jin Choi (67) of South Korea, Taiwan’s Peiyun Chien (70) and Nasa Hataoka (70) of Japan.
Chien, seeking her first LPGA Tour, is hoping for a strong finish on Sunday.
“I really want to win with my first win as soon as possible because I took care of every shot, every swing, everything I need to do,” she said. “Very happy to be here and I played well yesterday. If I can do it, I do it. If not, still have a lot of chance, I can go for it.”
–Field Level Media