Blanca Fernandez fired a round of 67(-6) on day three at Al Maaden Golf Marrakech to lead by one-shot at the Final Qualifier of Lalla Aicha Q-School.
The Spaniard began the day in a share of third place and started well with a birdie on the first before making an eagle on the fourth.
Fernandez dropped a shot on the fifth but made up for it with birdies on six and eight before another dropped shot on 10.
However, it was soon forgotten with birdies on holes 11, 13 and 16 to seal a round of six-under and lead with a total of 13-under-par.
“[On the eagle] It was kind of funny, I was on the fairway,” said Fernandez. “Alvaro and I were discussing the shot and it was a fun discussion.
“I hit the shot exactly like we talked about and then the putt, he told me where to hit it and it perfectly went in, so it was a perfect three.
“The other birdies were similar; I was hitting good shots and then good putts. Everything is good with my game, sometimes I miss something, but everything is in order.
“I hope I would be in this position, but anything can happen. I’m not thinking too much about where I am on the leaderboard. Tomorrow, the plan is the same as the second day just hitting good tee shots, good shots to the green and making as many putts as possible.”
Daniela Darquea continued her fine form at Royal Golf Marrakech firing a round of 68 (-4) on day three in Morocco.
The Ecuadorian rolled in birdies on the second and fourth holes, before making bogeys on the fifth and seventh.
However, the momentum turned back around with a birdie on the eighth followed by an eagle on 10 and a birdie on 13.
The 29-year-old dropped another shot on the 16th but bounced back immediately with a birdie on 17 to sit in second place with a total of 12-under-par.
“I think I’ve been playing pretty good,” said Darquea. “I’m really happy with my ball striking. My putting could be a little better, but I think, I’ve been staying patient, making a couple of putts, misreading and missing a couple more, but that’s ok.
“I feel pretty confident for the next few days. When I played the practice round [at Royal] I thought this course is narrow, but like I said, I’ve been hitting the ball pretty good, so that’s really a good thing.
“I just want to give myself as many opportunities as I can next year. I love playing golf, so I want to keep playing and I feel like the LET is a really good stage to be at and compete.
“I’m super proud of being an Ecuadorian. I’m very happy to bring my country to this Tour and represent them. I’m just excited to be here and obviously people back home have been following and cheering me on, so I’m really grateful for that.”
Ireland’s Anna Foster had an exceptional third day of the competition firing the round of the week at Al Maaden with a 65 (-8).
The 23-year-old had three birdies on her front nine, but it was her back nine where her putter got hot with a birdie on the 11th followed by four birdies in a row on holes 13 through 16.
Foster finished in style with a final birdie on the 18th to sit in a share of third place on 11-under-par on the leaderboard at the 54-hole mark.
“I got off to a good start,” said the Irishwoman. “The only thing I was really trying to do today was play the par-5s well and then anything more would have been a bonus.
“I did well on the par-5s and then my putter was hot today, so I have to thank her for that. I just got on a roll and then the hole just got bigger and bigger as the day went on. A solid round.
“By the fourth birdie [in a row], I was just like this has to stop soon and it did the next hole. It was great to get some momentum, and I really love this golf course. I think it just suits my eye, and it will just be about trying to bring that momentum into tomorrow now and give myself some confidence and self-belief from today.
“Almost there, it’s been a long slog but I’m just trying to almost count down the holes now until home time. I’m just trying to stay as present and patient as possible. It’s such a long week. You can’t really get ahead of yourself in a good or bad way. I’m really proud of myself today.”
Spain’s Teresa Toscano sits alongside Foster in T3 after firing a round of 67 (-5) including an eagle on 17 on day three at Royal.
“Honestly, I just stayed patient with it,” said Toscano. “You have to be pretty solid at this golf course, you can’t go off the fairway. My driver has been really good today, it was straight and I stayed patient with the putts and a couple of them went in. That eagle on the par-5 felt really good after all the pars. I was on the front edge in two, about 21 feet from the pin and I made a good putt.
“I’m looking forward to playing Al Maaden two days in a row now and it’s the same thing staying patient. It’s wide open, so you can just hit your driver, but I’ll be staying patient and playing the same game. Patience is key for me!”
Germany’s Polly Mack, who is in outright fifth place on 10-under-par, posted a bogey-free 69 (-3) at Royal.
“I was consistent playing today. There were no big mistakes made. I think I hit most of the greens, good drives off the tee, except for one, and just good numbers for the wedges,” said Mack.
“Throughout the day I left myself a lot of birdie chances and was able to see them through on a few of them during this round. Some go in, some don’t, and you just got to be patient for that.
“I could have had more on the back nine, but I’m not upset about it. I think that’s just what it is this week, it’s a marathon, so we just like consistency. Now having this course out of the way, it is definitely comfortable to know we just have Al Maaden left. Overall, I feel like so far we’re doing good. I like what my caddie and I are doing out there. We’re being calm.”
Wales Darcey Harry and Argentinian amateur Ela Anacona are one shot further back in a share of sixth place.
Meanwhile four players round out the top 10 with South Africa’s Danielle Du Toit, Denmark’s Cecilie Finne-Ipsen, Thailand’s Supamas Sangchan and Australia’s Maddison Hinson-Tolchard all on eight-under.
The fourth round will begin at 9.30 am (local time) on Thursday and there will be a cut to the top 65 players and ties at the end of the day.
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