Ariya Jutanugarn and Samantha Wagner share the lead before the final-18 of the 37th Junior PGA Championship
Defending champion Ariya Jutanugarn is in a familiar spot at the 37th Junior PGA Championship. For the second straight year, she has stunned her opponents so far with a blistering performance in each of the opening three rounds.
She recorded a one-under par 71 on Thursday to settle for a nine-under par 54-hole score. Later in the evening, Samantha Wagner also joined her on the top after a bogey-free three-under par 69.
Despite the fact that Jutanugarn still leads the tournament, she was a little disappointed with her overall performance on day three. Every time she recorded a birdie, it was offset by a bogey.
She sank a total of six birdies against five bogeys that gave Wagner a chance to get in contention for the final18 holes of the championship.
According to Thailand’s top amateur, she had been struggling with her swing right from the start of the event. Moreover, she was having difficulty in using her irons, as she had problems in making accurate calculations of her shots.
“Maybe I have to fix my swing,” she said. “... I don’t know I can’t hit straight”.
On the other hand, Wagner was really pleased with her performance, especially when she was playing alongside Jutanugarn in the same group. “Everything was working well,” Wagner said of her 3-under par 69.
“I was making putts, I was chipping well, I was hitting the fairways and the greens. I was so happy because I hit it kind of close to her (Jutanugarn)”.
Last year, the winning score was 10-under par for the tournament. However, it does not seem enough for this year’s competition, as there are many players close to that mark before the start of the final round.
Therefore, the top contenders in the field will have to set some high targets while teeing off on Friday.
Moriya Jutanugarn, Ariya’s elder sister, is also in contention for the top spot while entering the final phase of the tournament. She currently holds the shared third position, along with Alison Lee with a seven-under par three-round score.
“You honestly never know because there’s pressure and there might be weather,” Lee said. “There’s all the different elements that might contribute”.
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