Leona Maguire (-8) continues to lead the Aramco Team Series taking place in London. The Irishwoman will be seeking her first victory of the season this Friday at the Centurion Club. So far, she’s showing a high level of play, even though she struggled on the English course today. The wind made a strong appearance.
The Amundi Evian Championship, the fourth Major of the year, is just around the corner and Maguire wants to roar again with a victory that has eluded her for more than twelve months. It would be the first victory of her career on the Ladies European Tour. It’s surprising that a player of Maguire’s stature hasn’t yet won on the circuit. It’s true that she focuses her schedule mainly on the LPGA, but the player born in Cavan has already accumulated 25 tournaments on the European circuit and could remove that thorn tomorrow.
After being the only player not to make a single bogey on Wednesday, Leona had already made two in just five holes on Thursday. At that moment, Georgia Hall (-6) stepped on the accelerator and in her first nine holes, she pulled five birdies out of the hat. She turned the scoreboard around with a great game. The Englishwoman was eight under par and the Irishwoman five strokes below the field. There were nine holes ahead, in the case of both, the first nine of Centurion. There the tables would turn again. Georgia made three mistakes and only one success that left her at the final -6. Leona, however, added two successes that returned her to the top of the table with a two-stroke lead over the Englishwoman and four over Sarah Schober, Hannah Green and Laura Fuenfstueck (-4).
Right now it seems like a contest between two, rivals tomorrow for the title and precisely teammates in the last Solheim Cup and almost certainly in the edition to be held in September.
The best placed Spaniard is María Hernández (-2). She is well within the top ten of the tournament and with serious aspirations to add a large bounty. Victory seems difficult, but with a great final round why not even dream of victory. María is one of the seven players in the tournament who has not lost to the field on either of the two days. Much merit. Today the Madrid player has handed in a card of 71 strokes without error.
Like María, Mireia Prat (+1) has achieved one of the best cards of the day thanks to two late consecutive birdies on her last flags of the day. 71 strokes have helped her to climb 20 positions and get among the top twenty of the tournament.
Nuria Iturrioz (+2) could not maintain the level shown on the first day and three double bogeys have reduced her options in the tournament. She finally finished with a cumulative +2 that keeps her among the top 25 in the tournament. Fátima Fernández Cano (+3) and Paz Marfá also made the cut in London.
Those who will not play the final and decisive day are Marta Martín (+8), Teresa Díez Moliner (+9), Carmen Alonso (+10) and Marta Sanz (+14). Marta Martín from Madrid is already on her way to Evian to play the first Major of her career.
