– Trichat Cheenglab (-15) seemed to have locked up the tournament by the 9th hole of the third round of the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España. She had a tidy score of two under par. She was at the top with -17, and her nearest rival was seven strokes behind. Nothing to fear.
However, rarely in golf can anything be taken for granted. The golfer who yesterday broke the course record with an impressive score of 63 strokes and hadn’t made a bogey in 58 holes (including the last eight of the Aramco China Championship and the first 50 this week at Guadalhorce), finished with two completely unexpected bogeys on holes 14 and 18, signed a par round, and opened the door.
– But of course, it’s not just about opening the door; there has to be a player who puts her foot in and reaches out. That has been Perrine Delacour (-12). The 31-year-old veteran French golfer, with a card of 66 strokes, has put up a fight. She’s within reach. Three strokes away. A distance by no means insurmountable. And she finished with a bogey on her last hole.
There’s a fight. Delacour also has the advantage that she has already won this year and has very little to lose after a couple of seasons alternating between the LPGA Tour and the LET, with much more success in Europe than across the Atlantic. Remember, Cheenglab hasn’t won since 2016. That can weigh heavily when it comes to the crunch. Surely, it has already weighed in the last four holes of this Saturday.
– In third position is fellow Frenchwoman Nastasia Nadaud (-10), a golfer with a very elegant swing. She has reasons to believe it’s possible. If she replicates Friday’s round (65 strokes), she’ll give herself a chance. This year she has been runner-up twice but has never won. That could also weigh against her. Even, one should consider including outsiders like Kirsten Rudgeley (-9) and Smilla Tarning Soenderby (-9), although they already need something special and a few lucky breaks ahead.
– What there won’t be, barring a huge surprise, is a Spanish victory. It’s not happening this year. Carlota Ciganda (-7) is the best placed, although she seems very far off. Everything would depend on setting a new course record. Who knows. She certainly has the ability to do it. After all, today she shot 68, but her round could easily have been 64. She played brilliantly from tee to green but didn’t sink a single putt over a metre and a half, missed several very good chances, and failed a two-foot putt for par on the 13th. “I don’t know what happened, a mental lapse, I got involved, badly…”, she explained to Ten Golf at the end. With Carlota, you can always expect something great. It’s her last round of the year, and that always helps with motivation.
– Behind Carlota are Azahara Muñoz (-6), who finished with a birdie, Andrea Revuelta (-5), Nuria Iturrioz (-5), Teresa Toscano (-4), and Ana Peláez (-4). All of them still have serious chances of making it into the top 10.
