Rogers, Aug 30: India’s Aditi Ashok brought home a card of three-under 68 to make the cut at the weather-hit Walmart NW Arkansas Championship here.
Playing her first LPGA event in the United States in 2020, Aditi was two-under through six holes in the second round when play stopped due to inclement weather but she maintained her calm on resumption.
She birdied fourth and fifth and then 14th and 16th and was cruising at four-under through 16 holes.
However, she dropped a lone bogey of the day on 17th and then parred the 18th to take her total to five-under 137. She is now Tied-28th ahead of the final round late on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Swede Anna Nordqvist shot a nine-under 62 to take a three-stroke lead over Sei Young Kim into the final round.
Tied for the first-round lead after a 64, Nordqvist hit all 18 greens in regulation at Pinnacle Country Club in her second straight bogey-free round.
Aditi is coming off two weeks of Links golf in Scotland but her LPGA events were at the start of the year in Australia and she missed both cuts. A solid start this week will go a long way in getting the lanky youngster’s confidence back.
Anna, 33, birdied five of the first six holes and seven of the first 11 in the round interrupted by an afternoon thunderstorm. She added two more on the par-3 15th and par-5 18th to get to 16-under 126.
Kim followed an opening 65 with a 64. She eagled the 18th and closed with a birdie on the par-4 ninth to get to 13-under. The South Korean player skipped the Women’s British Open last week.
Nelly Korda (63), Jenny Shin (63) and Austin Ernst (65) were 12 under. Angela Stanford (66) was 10-under.
Stacey Lewis (66-68), who won the Ladies Scottish Open two weeks ago for her 13th LPGA Tour title, is T-11th at eight-under. (PTI)
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