Ardina gains, but Saso, Pagdanganan fade in Lotte Championship 'Moving day'

MANILA, Philippines — Dottie Ardina shot three birdies to make up for a double-bogey mishap on No. 12 as she improved from the last surviving group at 62nd to a share of 47th in the third round of the LOTTE Championship still paced by Korean Hyo Joo Kim in Oahu, Hawaii Friday (Saturday, Manila time).

Ardina bucked a shaky iron play with superb putting, finishing with 28 putts after missing the green seven times, her 35-36 card moving her 15 spots up on a two-over 218 aggregate.

Though she stayed 12 strokes behind Kim, who kept her three-stroke lead intact at 206 despite a 72 after back-to-back 67s, Ardina can hope to ride on her big rebound in tough conditions for a better finish in the $2 million tournament, her first LPGA event in the season.

Reigning US Women’s Open champion Yuka Saso, among those in tied for 62nd place after 36 holes, birdied two of the first three holes but stumbled at the finish, dropping two strokes on the 17th and holing out with a bogey. 

The spearhead of Team ICTSI wound up with a 73 for a 220 and hardly improved to joint 56th in the event where she placed sixth last year after leading the first two rounds.

Bianca Pagdanganan, meanwhile, turned in her worst round in three days, a 78 after a 70-77, her 41-37 card marred by back-to-back double bogeys from No. 2 for a 225 in a tie for second-to-last at 75th with young Taiwanese Yu Sang Hou, who also limped with six-over card at the Hoakalei Country Club course.

Kim, the world No. 13, actually struggled with bogeys on Nos. 7 and 12 but recovered her form in time, birdying Nos. 14 and 18 to salvage a 72 and keep his spot at the top.

American Brianna Do shot one of the day’s three-best scores of 67s as she charged back from a share of 17th to joint second at 209 with Japanese Hinako Shibuno, who fired a 68, while Korean Somi Lee and England’s Stephanie Meadow pooled identical 210s after matching outputs (71-70-69) for the third straight day.

Erstwhile second-running Sarah Kemp of Australia skied to a 78 and fell to joint 21st at 215.

Like Ardina, Saso banked on her putting (29 putts) to atone for five missed fairways and greens and save a 73 but the world No. 12 would need to come up with big adjustments in the last 18 holes to at least turn in a creditable finish heading to the next LPGA event, the DIO Implant LA Open on April 21-24 in California where Pagdanganan will also see action.

Pagdanganan actually finished with 27 putts but missed seven fairways despite settling for a 264-yard driving norm. But the power-hitting Filipinas wrestled with her irons all day that saw her miss the greens 13 times.