Men's NCAA Division I Rankings -- May 1
May 1, 2024
By Nick Hunter
nick@mngolf.org
CHASKA, Minn. – After three rounds of play at the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Hannah Green has entered uncharted territory. Despite carding her first three-putt of the week on the final hole Saturday, the 22-year-old Australian will take the 54-hole lead to the final round of a championship for the first time in her LPGA career Sunday at Hazeltine National Golf Club.
A winner of three tournaments on the Symetra Tour in 2017, Green is searching for her first LPGA victory in her 36th start this week. She enters Sunday’s final round one shot clear of Ariya Jutanugarn, a 10-time winner on tour and a former world No. 1.
“Surprisingly, I wasn’t nervous on the first tee,” Green said after her round Saturday. “Obviously this is my first time in this position, so I feel like I will be a little bit nervous come tomorrow, but when I had more time to wait in between shots, that’s when I started to feel the nerves and my heart beating and I need to slow things down, take my time and not rush into any shots.
“Overall, I think I have to be really happy playing with Ariya for the first time and trying to keep up with her—it’s hard, you want to hit it as hard as she does and as far as she does. I think I need to work on driver, keep that in play a bit more.”
While a number of the LPGA’s long hitters have risen near the top of the leaderboard this week, Green, who entered the tournament ranked 95th in driving distance, has fundamentally managed her way around the course for three days, getting some luck with a pair of chip-ins and holing a number of long-range putts.
Green needed only 23 putts during her opening-round 68 Thursday, and on Saturday, hit only six of 14 fairways, but scrambled to find the green 17 times.
Starting fast again Saturday, Green carded three birdies on her front nine, including a monster 50-footer for birdie at the fifth, but cooled off with her putter over her final nine holes. Unable to get up-and-down for par at the 13th, Green recorded her first bogey of the round before missing a short eagle putt at the 15th. Missing a 9-footer for par on the final hole, Green took her first three-putt of the tournament.
“Pretty disappointing to end with a three-putt—that’s my first one all week. I got myself to the front of the green and I knew it was going to be a hard two-putt,” Green said. “I had some really long putts today, but it was earlier in the round, so I kind of was struggling with my pace a little bit. Even coming down the stretch, leaving some short in the heart.
“I wasn’t nervous over any shots, I was able to calm myself down, but I was definitely disappointed with the putt on 16 and 18. I’ve said all week that I’ve been getting lucky, and I guess winners do get lucky, so you need to take it while you can. Yes, I have thought about the outcome tomorrow come the 18th hole, but I need to keep my cool, have fun out there and embrace it. If it does come to me winning it, I want to make sure that I remember it and have fun.”
Jutanugarn is coming off the best year of her career in 2018 and is searching for her third career major victory this week. Carding four birdies on her front nine, Jutanugarn said Saturday’s round felt like match play, keeping pace with Green.
A bogey at the 15th put Jutanugarn back to 4-under for the championship, but she answered by two-putting for birdie at the 15th. Getting aggressive on the tee at the short, par-4 16, Jutanugarn found the penalty area right of the fairway, leading to a bogey. She would birdie the 17th to pull within two shots before Green’s bogey at the 18th to sit one shot off the lead with 18 holes to play Sunday.
“I started to make putts today, so especially on my front nine, I had a lot better commitment,” Jutanugarn said Saturday. “I felt like I hit my irons so well. I missed a few tee shots. I can’t put pressure on [Green], she made every putt.
Asked if she’ll be thinking about clawing closer to claiming her third major Sunday, Jutanugarn said, “Of course I’m thinking, but I know that does not help me. I know that when I’m thinking about that in the last five months, I’m not happy, I’m not playing well and I’m just going to stop thinking about that and go out, have fun.”
Coming off a historic season, Jutanugarn has claimed three top-10s this year and has had to change her mentality on and off the golf course, as well as grasping expectations.
“I felt last year I had a great year, but I keep thinking about the outcome, especially after you become No. 1 and you come back and play this season,” she said. “I just feel a lot of expectation not from others but myself.
“When I play bad, I start to be unhappy. I start to be disappointed and I have to learn and know that golf and life are different.”
Jutanugarn won the 2016 Ricoh Women’s British Open prior to her three wins at the Kingsmill Championship presented by Geico, the U.S. Women’s Open and the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open last year.
She swept all five major awards to end the season and earned Rolex Player of the Year honors with three events left on the schedule. She also claimed the Vare Trophy, the Money Title and the Race to the CME Globe, the first to accomplish the feat.
After making the cut on the number Friday, Minnesotan Sarah Burnham slipped during Saturday’s third round, posting a 4-over 76 and will enter Sunday’s final round tied for 75th at 9-over par 225.
The final round of the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship is scheduled to begin at 9:12 a.m. at Hazeltine National Golf Club.
2019 KPMG WOMEN’S PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
HAZELTINE NATIONAL GOLF CLUB
CHASKA, MINN.
6,619 YARDS, PAR 72
SATURDAY’S THIRD ROUND RESULTS
1. Hannah Green, 68-69-70—207
2. Ariya Jutanugarn, 70-70-68—208
T3. Lizette Salas, 72-71-68—211
T3. Nelly Korda, 72-70-69—211
T5. Sei Young Kim, 73-72-67—212
T5. Sung Hyun Park, 70-71-71—212
T7. Inbee Park, 72-73-68—213
T7. Danielle Kang, 75-70-68—213
T7. Lauren Stephenson, 72-73-68—213
T7. Amy Yang, 70-74-69—213
T7. Angel Yin, 71-71-71—213
T75. SARAH BURNHAM, MAPLE GROVE, MINN., 78-71-76—225
For complete tournament results go to: www.lpga.com/leaderboard
May 1, 2024
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