Golf

Americans Corpuz, Yin sit atop Chevron leaderboard heading into final round

April 23, 2023 12:36 pm

[Source: Reuters Sports]

Americans Allisen Corpuz and Angel Yin charged up the leaderboard to share a one-shot lead at 10-under par after a pair of near-flawless performances in the third round of the Chevron Championship.

Corpuz carded a five-under-par 67 after she birdied on four of the first five holes at the Club at Carlton Woods near Houston but was forced to share the lead after a missed putt saw her settle for par on the final hole.

Six birdies and a bogey on the par-5 four saw Yin (67) equal the effort, though a bit of good old-fashioned luck helped, as her tee shot on 12 inexplicably bounced off the water hazard and onto the bank.

Article continues after advertisement

Neither of the two players has won on the LPGA tour before and both are hoping to hoist their maiden major title on Sunday.

South Korean Amy Yang put herself in a strong position when she carded a seven-under-par 65, sharing a three-way tie for third with American Megan Khang (70) and Switzerland’s Albane Valenzuela (68), who drained a long putt for a birdie on the final hole.

Yang has 19 top-10 finishes in the majors and reminded the field at the first women’s major of the year why she is a perennial contender as she produced five birdies on the front nine and only a single bogey on the par-4 11.

South Korean Chun In-gee (69) got the crowd going with an ace on the par-3 17 after starting on the back nine. She finished tied for 18th, seven strokes back from the lead, with plenty of ground to cover after a disappointing six over par in the opening round.

The second round of the tournament wrapped up early on Saturday after organisers were forced to halt play due to darkness. The start of Friday’s action was delayed two hours due to torrential overnight rain.

South Korean Kim A Lim (72) was at the top of the leaderboard through 36 holes but lost some of her brilliance on Saturday with a double bogey on the par-3 third and a bogey on the par-4 fifth and fifteenth holes.

She finished the day tied for sixth with her compatriots Choi Hye-jin and Kim Hyo-joo and American Nelly Korda, two shots back from the top of the leaderboard.