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World number two Choi Na-Yeon emerged from a two-and-a-half-hour storm delay to birdie the last hole and dramatically snatch a share of the HSBC Women’s Champions lead alongside Stacy Lewis yesterday. |
Choi, who is eyeing the number one ranking of Taiwan’s Tseng Yani, holed a 10-footer in front of a big gallery on the damp 18th green to card five-under-par 67 for a total of 14-under 202 at Singapore’s par-72 Sentosa Golf Club.
The putt ended an engrossing day-long duel between Choi and America’s Lewis, who was incensed when play was halted with the final group already on the 18th fairway and with her narrow one-shot lead in the balance.
When they finally resumed, after a torrential downpour, Choi fired closest to the flag and steadied herself to drain the psychologically important birdie, which left her beaming ahead of today’s final round.
“I think that frees me up for tomorrow. I think I can remember that feeling for tomorrow,” she said. “I mean, I finished strong and that putt, I hit it pretty solid.
“I was a little nervous for the third shot, I don’t know why. A lot of people were waiting, I didn’t expect that. But I made it really well and I feel great.”
Lewis, the world number four, had remonstrated with officials when play was suspended and bemoaned a “very frustrating” day after she gave up a two-shot overnight lead, finishing with a 69.
“It was very frustrating. We waited all day, the pace of play was not very good, and it’s frustrating,” she said. “Three fast players are in the back there, and we had to sit there and wait.”
Choi and Lewis will play the last round with America’s Paula Creamer, who continued to make light of whiplash injuries from a car crash in Thailand last week when she scored 69 to lie two shots back from the leaders.
Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn, 17, Danielle Kang, Yoo Sun-Young and Azahara Munoz are the closest challengers to the top trio, lying three strokes behind Creamer on nine-under-par 207.
Tseng’s 107-week reign as world number one cannot end in Singapore, and it was just as well as the frowning “Pride of Taiwan” bogeyed four out of eight holes around the turn before finishing with 71 for 212, 10 shots off the lead.
Tseng, now into her third year at the top of women’s golf, started the season positively with top-three finishes in Australia and Thailand but a poor final position today will put her number one ranking in serious jeopardy.