Indian sports wrap, May 12: Aditi shoots 71, lies T-39 in Founders Cup on LPGA

GOLF

Aditi shoots 71, lies T-39 in Founders Cup on LPGA

Indian golfer Aditi Ashok returned a card of one-under 71 on the third day to be Tied-39 at the Cognizant Founders Cup on the LPGA.

Aditi, who has been having a modest season with a best of 21st at the HSBC women’s World Championships in Singapore in February, had five birdies against four bogeys in the round.

Her earlier rounds were 75-76 and she is now 1-under 215 for 54 holes.

Madelene Sagstrom leads at 19-under going into the final round and she sits just one shot ahead of Rose Zhang, who is at 18-under at Upper Montclair Country Club.

On the moving day, Sagstrom (65-66-65) and Zhang (63-68-67) each shot their third consecutive round in the 60s. They are far ahead of the third-placed Korean Sei Young Kim ((72-69-67) is 8-under.

Sagstrom looks to earn her second career victory in her eight years on the LPGA Tour.

The 20-year-old Zhang would also earn her second career victory on Tour with a win on Sunday, and it would be her second consecutive winning season in her young career.

Zhang will return next week to the Mizuho Americas Open as the defending champion.

-PTI

Pranavi finishes tied seventh in Korea

Pranavi Urs produced a strong finish with three birdies in a four-hole stretch on the back nine for a top-10 finish at the Aramco Team Series Korea.

Pranavi shot rounds of 69-77-69 for a 1-under 215 and was tied-seventh at the end of the competition.

This was the second top-10 finish in six starts this season for the Mysuru girl, who has been an ‘Order of Merit’ winner in the Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour, before earning a status on the Ladies European Tour.

The other two Indians, the Olympic-bound Diksha Dagar (79-72-71) shot 6-over to finish tied 37th while Vani Kapoor (77-74-77) had a below-par 12-over and tied 60th rank.

Korea’s Hyo-Joo Kim lived up to her billing as the home favourite to win by three shots in Seoul.

Leading by two shots heading into the final round, the Major winner held off Charley Hull’s Sunday surge carding a round of 68 (-4) to end the week on 10-under par.

Pranavi had a sedate front nine with a birdie on the sixth and a bogey on the ninth. She birdied three times on 14th, 16th and the 17th with no bogeys for a 69.

Diksha trying to force things had five birdies along with four bogeys for a 71.

-PTI