Sarah Schmelzel and Albane Valenzuela are one round away from a breakthrough LPGA win after taking the lead at the Dow Championship in Michigan.
American Sarah Schmelzel and Switzerland’s Albane Valenzuela combined for a two-under-par 68 on Saturday to grab a one-shot lead heading into the final round of the LPGA Dow Championship in Michigan.
Chasing their first LPGA titles, the pair carded four birdies and two bogeys in the alternate-shot format at Midland Golf Club to move to 13-under 197 overall.
“You’re kind of on pins and needles most of the day, just hoping you don’t get your partner in trouble,” said Schmelzel, who holed birdie putts at the 6th and 7th after a bogey at the 5th.
“The birdie at the 1st definitely calmed the nerves of foursomes.”
Valenzuela added a birdie at the 9th before the team dropped another shot at the 11th and parred their way home.
One shot back on 12-under 198 are Belgium’s Manon De Roey and France’s Pauline Roussin-Bouchard, who signed for a one-under 69, and South Koreans Im Jin-hee and Lee So-mi, who matched the leaders with a 68.
“It’s not that we were really stressed or anything,” said Roussin-Bouchard. “Momentum didn’t come straightaway. A clutch putt on five to get a par actually kind of loosened us up a little bit.”
Overnight leaders Jennifer Kupcho and Leona Maguire struggled in the tougher alternate-shot format, carding a two-over 72 to slip to a share of fourth on 11 under 199.
They are tied with Park Sung-hyun and Yoon Ina of South Korea and Americans Lauren Hartlage and Brooke Matthews.
Kupcho, who won the event in 2022 and finished second last year, will be hoping for a final-round surge in Sunday’s closing four-ball format.
© Agence France-Presse
Photo: David Berding/Getty Images
