Miranda Wang Leads FM Championship with a Three-Stroke Lead
Golfer Miranda Wang left TPC Boston with a three-stroke lead for the second consecutive day, this time overcoming a three-stroke deficit with brilliant putting that led her to a 7-under-65 at the FM Championship. Wang is seeking her first LPGA victory. Wang needed only 24 putts on the rain-softened course, and she might have benefited from playing only 18 holes. Some of the Chinese player’s competitors faced longer days due to the storms that interrupted play the previous day. The golfer holed an 8-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to cap off a bogey-free round, giving her a three-shot lead over Sei Young Kim (71) and Rose Zhang (67). Wang stood at 18-under 198.Kim had a high-scoring streak in both nines on Saturday morning when he played 14 holes to complete his second round with 65 and build a three-stroke lead. The afternoon wasn’t so smooth, and his lead vanished in three holes. Wang first went ahead with a birdie on the sixth hole, and showed what kind of day it would be on the next hole. He missed his approach on the par 5 seventh hole to the right and out of a tree. His third shot was about 60 feet long, and then he holed it for birdie. Wang also made a 40-foot birdie putt on the 14th hole and finished the day with a streak of 27 consecutive bogey-free holes. The former Duke player’s key to the week was her back nine on Thursday. Wang had eight birdies (along with a bogey) for a 29 on the front nine, an indication that she was feeling comfortable on the greens.This is the place where all the players want to be, so it’s definitely special to enter the final round as the sole leader. This is what we try to do every week, so I’m glad I did my job really well. I hope to keep doing what I did today.
Miranda Wang
Zhang, who won her first LPGA event as a professional two years ago, hasn’t had a top 10 against a full field all year while trying to split time between playing and finishing at Stanford.Since I had a really good nine-footer in the first round, my putting has been working. I was getting speed and line really well and made super long putts on the 7th hole today, and that gave me even more confidence. I know I’m doing well on these greens, so when putting I have more confidence and comfort.
Miranda Wang
Zhang had to play 32 holes – 14 in the morning when he had a 64, and then he had four birdies in a stretch of five holes around the turn in the afternoon as he tried to keep pace with Wang.It’s been a while since I’ve been in contention, so I’m very, very grateful.
Rose Zhang
Jeeno Thitikul (65) and Andrea Lee (66) were four strokes back. Nelly Korda’s quest for her first LPGA victory this year will likely have to wait. She was in range when she left the course on Friday evening, but could only manage a 70 in the morning and a 70 in the afternoon. Korda failed to birdie any of the four par 5s. Korda was nine strokes behind the leader. Wang, an LPGA rookie, will try to extend a remarkable streak on the LPGA Tour this year. 22 tournaments have been played, all won by different players.I feel like the only thing I’ve been doing today is eating and drinking water and electrolytes. It’s been a while since I played 32 holes. I needed to push myself a little bit. I needed to stay focused. But I felt like I took a lot of positives today knowing that I have the stamina to play consistent golf and keep trying to get better.
Rose Zhang
