Golf

Leona Maguire roars into contention in Grand Rapids after eagle finish to her round

Olivia Mehaffey drops down leaderboard at Amundi German Masters after one-over 73 in third round

Leona Maguire hits her tee shot on the second hole during the second round of the Meijer LPGA Classic at Blythefield Country Club in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Photograph: David Berding/Getty Images
Leona Maguire hits her tee shot on the second hole during the second round of the Meijer LPGA Classic at Blythefield Country Club in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Photograph: David Berding/Getty Images
Sat Jun 17 2023 - 16:44

Leona Maguire finished with an eagle to complete a brilliant seven-under 65 that saw the Cavan golfer rise to second spot at the Meijer LPGA Classic in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Friday.

The 28-year-old was six under for her final seven holes, including four straight birdies from the 12th as she finished the day on 10 under, a shot behind Japan’s Ayaka Furue.

It’s tight at the top of the leaderboard with Maguire in a four-way tie for second along with the South Korean duo of Hyo Joo Kim and Amy Yang, and Spain’s Carlota Ciganda.

Stephanie Meadow carded a three-under 69 to move to five under and a share of 27th position.

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Furue avoided bogeys while carding a five-under 67, sinking five birdies at Blythefield Country Club.

Furue, 23, who is making a run at her second career LGPA title, said: “I think my shots and putting was really good. So, yeah, that worked for me today.”

Maguire’s 65 tied for her lowest round of the season, her 54 putts through 36 holes is the lowest in the field. She capped off her day in style on the par-five finishing hole with an eagle.

“Hitting the fairway on 18 is key,” Maguire said. “The way the wind is blowing out of the left is quite hard. I can’t carry that bunker, so it’s hard for me to hit the fairway.”

Among the players to miss the cut of two under were Lexi Thompson and Lydia Ko.

Olivia Mehaffey slipped five shots off the pace at the Amundi German Masters in Berlin after carding a one-over 73 in her third round.

Leader after rounder when she shot a stunning eight-under 64, the Northern Irish golfer got to nine under after a one-under 71 in her second round. But moving day saw Mehaffey slip back to a share of fifth position after a round that started brightly after back-to-back birdies on the fifth and sixth holes moved her to 11 under. A double-bogey six on the eighth brought her back level for her round, and a dropped shot on the 12th saw her sign for a one-over 73.

The 25-year-old lies five shots off joint leaders Cara Gainer of England and and Czechia’s Kristyna Napoleaova going into the final round.

It was another consistent day for Gainer, who followed up rounds of 68 and 67 on the first two days with a 68 in the third round. Napoleaova produced a round of 69 on the third day of the tournament at Golf & Country Club Seddiner See.

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