April 22, 2018: As she took her approach shot at the 14th hole, Aditi Ashok was even with the Wilshire Country Club course, stuck on the fringes of the top twenty in the LA Open. But moments later as the ball landed softly on the green and rolled quietly into the cup, the Indian moved to two under, in one eagle swoop. Aditi added another birdie at the 16th to buttress her position going into the final round on Sunday.
Jin Young Ko rode a 66 to earn a share of the lead with Moriya Jutanugarn. The Korean was on a sprint, posting five birdies and surging up the order by the time she reached the 16th hole.
A bogey there stalled her momentum, but she recovered well to score her sixth birdie of the round and reach Sunday with the title well within her reach.
Jutanugarn was three over through the seventh hole, after a double bogey at the first and a bogey at the 6th hole threatened to upend her chances of glory this week. But she bounced back in style, showing plenty of character and pluck along the way.
A birdie at the 8th, a spectacular eagle at the 14th and a final flourish at the last hole helped Jutanugarn to a handy 70 that enabled her to retain a share of the lead.
Inbee Park continued her fine run with a 69 in the third round. The South Korean is on a hot streak, having finished second in the ANA Inspiration and third in the Lotte Championship in the weeks preceding the LA Open.
Park is just two behind the leading duo and a good final round is certainly not beyond the considerable skills of this wonderful golfer.
Aditi will tee off in the company of Bronte Law and Austin Ernst looking for another good finish on the LPGA Tour. Aditi has an opportunity to better her T8 finish in the Marathon Classic last July. She also finished in T14 at the Kia Classic earlier this season.
- In this article
- Pros
- Women
- aditi ashok
- Jin Young Ko
- LA Open
- lpga
- Moriya Jutanugarn
