Two-time champion Jiyai Shin of Korea shot 5 under par (67) to overtake 36-hole leader and world number one Nelly Korda and take the lead after three rounds of the AIG Women’s Open on the Old Course at St. Andrews.
With a three-round total of 7 under par, Shin is one stroke ahead of reigning champion Lilia Vu, who played in the final group of the day with Korda and shot 1 under par, 71.
Korda, who began her round with a three-stroke lead over Vu and 2023 runner-up Charley Hull, lost her lead over the next nine holes, losing strokes with bogeys at the 12th, 13th and 17th holes and a double bogey at the 16th, but managed a birdie at the 18th to move two shots behind Shin.
Korda, who has won six LPGA Tour titles this season, including the Chevron Championship, finished the day with a score of 75 (3 over par).
“It’s nice to finish with a birdie, but it wasn’t the best day,” Korda said.
With a brilliant 20-degree hybrid approach shot from 189 yards on the 17th hole that finished two feet short of the flag and the subsequent birdie putt, the Korean moved to 7 under par and drew level (at the time) with Korda.
“Well, I just couldn’t see where the ball landed because of my height,” said Shin, who won in 2008 and 2012. “I couldn’t see it. I could hear a lot of applause, but I couldn’t see where it landed, and then I thought, OK, I’ll just make it to the green, and then when I get to 17, the hole, I thought, wow, so close.”
Vu, who began her back nine with bogeys on the 12th and 13th, rebounded with birdies on the 16th and 18th and a crucial par on the 17th.
“The wheels fell off halfway through,” said Vu, who is ranked second in the world. “I got nervous, but my caddie was able to reassure me and tell me that I’m playing well. It’s just a few streaks of bad luck.”
Olympic gold medalist Lydia Ko of Australia is tied with Jenny Shin of Korea, three strokes behind Shin.
Ko knows that the championship leader is a former world number one who now plays most of her golf in Japan and that this is her third appearance in the Women’s Open at St. Andrews.
“What she’s done is incredible,” Ko said of Shin. “She played in Korea and then came here as No. 1 in the world, went back to Japan and dominated there. I don’t know if there’s a single place on Earth where she hasn’t dominated, which is pretty crazy.”
Alexa Pano, who turned 20 on August 20, was able to move up the rankings with a score of 69 (3 under par), keeping her within striking distance of Jeeno Thitikul from Thailand, Jinhee In from Korea and Ruoning Yin from China.
“I don’t think you can really play too aggressively on this golf course,” Pano said. “You have to take a lot of the bounces you get and play smart most of the time. There are a lot of shots out there that I wish I could have played more aggressively, but you have to take what the wind and the golf course gives you. It takes a lot of concentration on each shot. So I guess I’ll just take it shot by shot like I’ve been doing all week.”
Hull dropped to a total of 2 under par with her third-round 75.
