Into Final Round of Taiwan Swinging Skirts LPGA

Yu-Ju Chen and Wei-Ling Hsu Sit at T15 & T23

(November 2, 2019; New Taipei City) Rolex Rankings No. 8 and defending champion Nelly Korda of the U.S. demonstrated textbook consistency today in the third round of Taiwan Swinging Skirts LPGA, going bogey-free for the second straight day while making seven birdies to take a comfortable three-shot lead over Minjee Lee of Australia heading into the final round.

The 21-year-old Korda trailed overnight leader Mi Jung Hur of Korea by one shot at the beginning of the third round, but she wasted no time to make two birdies over the first five holes to take over the lead, and expanded her advantage with more birdies down the stretch. The tall American not only leads the field in driving distance, but also have gone bogey-free for a whopping 38 consecutive holes since the 17th hole in round one.

Inbee Park of Korea won the 2014 edition of this tournament with a total score of 22-uner par, which still stands as the tournament record. If Korda shoots a 67 or lower score tomorrow, she will not only be in the driver′s seat for title defense, but will also set a new tournament record.

"I′ve been very consistent off the tee, and I′ve been giving myself some good opportunities, and if I do make a mistake, you know, I make sure to hit it pretty close and to make the putt," said Korda. Korda said she would need to put together a low score tomorrow because Minjee Lee and Caroline Masson will definitely go low. " Still have 18 holes, so I′m not going to get ahead of myself," said Korda. Minjee Lee and Caroline Masson carded a 67 and 66 today to sit in the second place and third place at 15-under and 14-under, respectively.

Second round leader Mi Jung Hur of Korea could not get much going today as she had the wind taken out of her sails after bogeying 4 and 11. She closed with a disappointing 71 to relinquish the lead, sitting T4 at 13-under par.
 
Round three of the tournament drew a total of 16,847 fans to the Miramar Golf & Country Club today under sunny skies, as the world′s elite golfers seized the opportunity to put on a show, recording a total of 13 eagles today, highlighted by Rolex Rankings No. 2 player Sung Hyun Park′s holing out from the fairway on 15. Pei-Ying Tsai and Babe Liu of Chinese Taipei each contributed an eagle, while American veteran Morgan Pressel made her second eagle in as many days.

Yu-Ju Chen is still the highest-standing Chinese Taipei player on the leaderboard after 54 holes. However, she confessed that she felt slightly fatigued on her closing holes today due to hectic scheduling. Chen scattered 5 birdies against 4 bogeys today to post a 71 and sit T15 at six-under. "I felt a bit tired at the end of the day and could not read the lines well. So I spent quite some time discussing with my caddie out there," said Chen.

Chinese Taipei LPGA regular Wei-Ling Hsu picked up three strokes after 14 holes today, but took her only bogey after driving her tee shot into the rough on 15. " My playing partners Korda and Park have both eagled the hole, so I think it′s my turn tomorrow, " said Hsu, who hoped to shoot a 67 or 68 tomorrow to finish in the top 10.

Yani Tseng, winner of the inaugural LPGA Taiwan Championship, made a surprise visit to the tournament today to cheer up her friends and fellow players, and was warmly greeted by fans on hand. Tseng revealed that she " missed the competitive vibe " on the golf course and expected to make a comeback next March.
 
Final round of the 2019 Taiwan Swinging Skirts LPGA is set to start tomorrow at the Miramar Golf Country Club. The leading threesome, anchored by Nelly Korda, will tee off from the 1st hole at 10:40 am. Yu-Ju Chen and Wei-Ling Hsu will start their rounds at 9:45 and 9:01 from the 1st hole, respectively.

In order to encourage more fans to come to the golf course weekend, organizers have planned an assortment of interactive events, including Nearest Pin Challenge, fun putting games on the practice green, as well as a lucky draw on Sunday featuring prizes ranging from Gogoro electric scooters to iPhone 11 Pro.

Tickets for the 2019 Taiwan Swinging Skirts LPGA can be purchased via ibon or at http://www.sslpgataiwan.com/pages/tickets Admission tickets for the final round start from NT$500. Formosa TV will provide live coverage tomorrow from noon till 4 pm. For more information, please visit: http://www.sslpgataiwan.com/