SHANGHAI (AP) — American Solheim Cup player Angel Yin shot a 7-under 65 on Saturday to move into a share of the third-round lead at the LPGA Shanghai tournament.
Yin was tied with Maja Stark, who had a one-stroke lead after two rounds.
Yin and Stark, who shot 70, had 12-under totals of 204 on the Qizhong Garden Golf Club course in the LPGA’s first return to China since 2019 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pavarisa Yoktuan of Thailand bogeyed her final hole for a 69 and was a shot back in third place.
Two-time defending champion Danielle Kang of the United States shot 73 and was four strokes behind the leaders.
Stark said it wasn’t her typical ball-striking showing on Saturday but credited her putting with keeping her at the top of the leaderboard.
The Swedish player rebounded after a bogey on No. 12 with back-to-back birdies on 13 and 14. A three-putt on the par-5 17th set her back once again, but the 23-year-old was still within striking distance of her second LPGA Tour title.
“It would mean a lot to win it just it prove to myself that I can actually do it when we have a lot of top players here,” said Stark, who is looking to become the season’s fourth wire-to-wire winner.
Yin’s 65 was her best 18-hole score since the third round of the 2021 Honda LPGA Thailand. Citing “bad communication” with her caddie for a three-putt bogey on No. 1, Yin carded eight birdies afterward, including five in her last eight holes for a back-nine 31.
“I’m just going to try to live in the moment, what’s in front of me, and try to hit my shots and stop living in my own head and overthinking everything,” Yin said. “And then if it works out, it works out.”
The event is the start of a four-tournament Asia swing, with later stops in South Korea, Malaysia and Japan.
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