Cara Gainer, Gabriela Ruffels share lead at Evian Championship
England's Cara Gainer looks at her ball after a shot during the third round of the Evian Championship.
EVIAN – England's Cara Gainer and Australia's Gabriela Ruffels share a one-stroke lead at 11-under entering the final round of the Evian Championship.
Gainer carded a 7-under 64 and Ruffels shot 66 in the third round on Saturday at the Evian Resort Golf Club in Evian-les-Bains, France.
World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand, three-time major winner Minjee Lee and fellow Australian Grace Kim, and second-round leader Somi Lee of South Korea are all 10-under at the fourth of this season's five LPGA Tour majors.
Gainer, 29, picked up her maiden title on the Ladies European Tour in Morocco in February. She tied for third at an LET event at this course in May.
'I've got confidence coming from that tournament,' she said. 'I know it's set up slightly different, but I have good feelings and good vibes in this amazing beautiful place.'
Gainer put herself into contention for her first major victory with six birdies, an eagle at the par-5 seventh hole and one bogey Saturday.
Ruffels, 25, has three titles on the Epson Tour but her best finish in a major was a T13 at the U.S. Women's Open in 2020. She opened the third round with her only bogey of the day before posting six birdies, including four during a five-hole stretch from Nos. 11-15.
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'Putter was really good today,' Ruffels said. 'Made some putts inside 15 feet. And, yeah, was just super solid tee to green.'
Japan's Yuri Yoshida and China's Ruixin Liu posted the low rounds of the day at 8-under 63. Yoshida finished a clean round with eight birdies and is tied for seventh at 9-under, while Liu collected seven birdies and an eagle at No. 7 to move into a tie for 12th at 7-under.
Andrea Lee (71 on Saturday) and Jennifer Kupcho (72) are the leading Americans in the field and part of the group in 12th place, four shots off the lead.
English amateur Lottie Woad (70) finished with a 60-foot birdie putt and is tied for 19th at 6-under with Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn, a two-time major winner.
'I didn't feel like I played that bad,' Woad said. 'This course can kind of get you sometimes. Had two sixes which didn't help. Hit a lot of good shots and holed some putts, and also hit some really good putts at the end that didn't quite go in.'
Meanwhile, England's Charley Hull said she was feeling better on July 11, one day after twice collapsing to the ground during the first round of the Evian Championship in France.
After the second collapse, she withdrew from the Major. Hull said she has been bothered by a virus.
'Not the @evianchamp I was hoping for,' she posted on Instagram.
'Been struggling with a virus all week but it got the better of me yesterday... thanks to the medics who took care of me and to all those who have reached out with messages of support, it's really appreciated.
'Happy to say I'm feeling a lot better today, just gutted I can't play the weekend at such a fantastic tournament.' REUTERS
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