Perrine Delacour fired a round of 70 (-2) on Saturday to move two shots clear at the Investec SA Women’s Open.
Delacour, who began the day just one shot off the lead, surged ahead to take a two-shot advantage heading into the final round at Erinvale Country and Golf Estate.
Moving day brought a contrast in weather compared to rounds one and two, with intermittent rain and shifting winds. These conditions played a significant role – particularly on the exposed back nine – challenging players throughout the day.
The 31-year-old embraced the tricky conditions and was able to perform under pressure, with only 18 holes remaining.
“It was definitely hard out there today”, said the one-time LET winner. “I was struggling to make birdies today and I just tried to stay patient. If the birdies came, great, but if not, par was good.”
She carded three birdies on the front nine, then dropped her only shot of the day on the 11th hole.
“I’m just going to keep the same mindset – stay patient, try my best, and we’ll see where we get to at the end. There’s still another 18 holes to play so a lot more golf and anything can happen,” said the Frenchwoman.
Delacour will be seeking her second LET victory tomorrow, having claimed her maiden last year at the Dormy Open Helsingborg, in a playoff with Germany’s Helen Briem.
In solo second sits South Africa’s Kiera Floyd, who took advantage of the front nine making three birdies. The back nine was more challenging as she posted three bogeys and three birdies on her scorecard, but made it a good day overall with 10-under par after 54 holes.
“It was tough. It was just a matter of keeping it in play and the back nine really helped me a lot,” said the 20-year-old.
Floyd finished off with a birdie on the last hole which allows her to sit comfortable in second place. The Sunshine Ladies Tour player came so close to a hole-in-one on the 12th, where a million rand is up for grabs.
“Perrine is a good player so it will be tough”, said the leading South African who is showcasing the local talent.
She’s had an impressive month having secured a round of 60 while claiming her maiden professional win on the SLT at the Platinum Ladies Open around Blair Atholl Golf and Equestrian Estate course.
Only one-shot back is Switzerland’s Chiara Tamburlini – the overnight leader – who now sits in third place on nine-under par.
Germany’s Laura Fuenfstueck who started the day in T4 and four shots off the pace, was able to put in a good solid round of one-under par, and eight-under par overall.
“I’m happy to be under par. I think at the beginning of the day I would have happily taken that, so, happy to not be too far away from it,” said the 30-year-old.
“Tomorrow I’ll just try and hit committed shots, pick good numbers, pick good clubs, and stick to my game plan,” said Fuenfstueck who had her 100th LET appearance at Lalla Meryem Cup in February.
Three players sit in a tie for fifth place including Norway’s Dorthea Forbrigd, Italy’s Alessandra Fanali, and England’s Bronte Law, who all sit on seven-under par.
It’s a close leaderboard with five players in a tie for eighth place. Wales’ Darcey Harry. South Africa’s Casandra Alexander, America’s Brianna Navarrosa, Australia’s Kelsey Bennett, and Germany’s Aline Krauter sit one-shot back on six-under par.
The fourth and final round of the Investec SA Women’s Open gets underway tomorrow at 9:00am (local time), with the leaders Delacour, Floyd and Tamburlini teeing off at 11:01am (local time).
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