Kia Classic - 3rd Round

Jiyai Shin leads by one stroke through three rounds of the Kia Classic.  Sandra Gal is in second place at -14 while Na Yeon Choi is third at -9, six shots behind the leader.

The current two-horse race had materialized even before Round Three started midday Saturday.  Coming off her Friday 64, Shin was -12 with Gal one shot back.  Their third-round partner In-Kyung Kim was only -7 and she managed to only improve that by one shot with her rollercoaster afternoon (five birdies, four bogeys).  Choi made the big move with a 65, featuring a hole-out eagle at the par-4 6^th plus six birdies.  Even so, NYC is barely within my standard final-round window of six strokes.

Gal stayed close by picking up three shots as she completed her second round Saturday morning.  She took the lead early in the third round with birdies at 1 and 3.  Shin got off slowly, bogeying 2 and not picking up her first birdie until 9.  Jiyai ran off two more at 10 and 11 as Sandra birdied 10.  This left them tied at -14.  A two-shot swing at 15 gave Shin a two-shot margin.  Both players birdied 17 but Jiyai took bogey at the final hole to leave her standing as she started the round, up by one.

Frankly, I can't see Jiyai Shin not winning today.  One of the two-or-three very best players in the world heads-up against a player with three Top 10s and a career-best of T5 in 70 career starts.  Yes, one of those Top 10s came last week at the Founders Cup and Sandra certainly held her own head-to-head against Shin on Saturday, even as Jiyai kept firing her approaches to within 12 feet.  Gal's only stumble on the back nine was actually somewhat of a positive.  Having dropped her tee shot at the par-3 15^th into a bunker, she made the smart, safe choice in blasting out at an angle away from the hole, eliminating the chance her shot could fly past and find the water hazard beyond.  As the announcers often say, she "took her medicine" from that poor tee shot and didn't blow herself right out of the tournament.  There's something different about Sunday however, and they don't call Shin the Final Round Queen for nothing.  I think it's just as likely that Na Yeon Choi or In-Kyung Kim makes a great run and steals this thing as Sandra Gal beats Jiyai Shin.