Lee Takes Pga Championship Lead As Thitikul Falters

Women's PGA Championship third-round leaderboard

-6 M Lee (Aus); -2 J Thitikul (Tha); +1 HJ Choi (Kor), L Thompson (US), M Yamashita

Selected others: +2 N Korda (US), L Maguire (Ire); +4 C Hull (Eng)

Leaderboard

Australian Minjee Lee opened up a four-shot lead astatine nan "brutal" Women's PGA Championship pinch a third-round 69 arsenic overnight leader Jeeno Thitikul faltered successful Frisco, Texas.

Lee was 3 shots down Thitikul astatine nan commencement of time 3 but produced an awesome bogey-free round, which included 3 birdies, to move to six nether arsenic windy conditions again made it difficult astatine nan Fields Ranch East course.

Thailand's Thitikul, chasing her first triumph astatine a major, led aft nan first 2 days of nan tourney but changeable a four-over 76, which included 2 birdies and six bogeys, and is connected 2 nether par.

England's Charley Hull changeable nan lowest people of nan 2nd information pinch a 69 and followed that up pinch a 73 arsenic she goes into nan last time connected 4 complete par.

There person only been 5 rounds successful nan 60s astatine nan tourney and Lee has carded 2 of them pinch 69s connected days 1 and three.

"I conscionable effort to enactment diligent retired there," said two-time awesome victor Lee. "You can't get up of yourself, particularly successful these conditions.

"It's only getting harder and harder conscionable pinch I deliberation unit of a awesome championship, and besides nan people conscionable demands truthful overmuch from you."

Lee's erstwhile awesome wins came astatine nan 2021 Evian Championship and 2022 US Women's Open.

She added: "I cognize what it takes to triumph and I cognize conscionable benignant of what to consciousness and what to expect now that I person 2 nether my belt.

"I conscionable deliberation nan acquisition that I've had is really going to thief maine hopefully get complete nan line."

Lee and Thitikul are nan only players nether par for nan 3rd of this year's 5 LPGA majors.

American Lexi Thompson is connected 1 complete par aft a 75 that began pinch a triple bogey and bogey, while compatriot Nelly Korda (72) and Ireland's Leona Maguire (72) are 1 changeable further back.

"Definitely proud of really I stayed strong," Thompson said. "It was benignant of a nightmare of a start, but I knew coming into nan time it was going to play very difficult.

"I don't cognize really what happened connected my first hole, but [I'm] happy I sewage it retired of nan measurement and stayed affirmative retired location and conscionable made pars and a fewer birdies present and there."

World number 1 Korda added: "It's sadistic retired location erstwhile it comes to nan set-up of nan play course, upwind conditions, everything. I'm very happy pinch moreover par.

"You're conscionable happy to get 18 nether your loop connected a time for illustration this."