Hye-Jin Choi Leads Buick LPGA Shanghai After Third Round

Choi Holds One-Stroke Lead at Buick LPGA Shanghai

After three rounds at the Buick LPGA Shanghai, thenewstribune.com reported, Hye-Jin Choi posted a 3-under-par 69 on Saturday to preserve a single-shot advantage over fellow South Korean competitor Amy Yang. Choi recorded four birdies on the front nine and moved to 9-under 207 for the tournament as she chases her first win on the LPGA Tour.

I hit a really good shot to the pin and I had lots of birdie chances and I made the birdie, so that’s the reason I played (well) on the front nine, Choi said.

The tournament marks the sixth edition of the event and the first held at the 6,735-yard Sheshan Golf Club, a venue that previously hosted the HSBC Champions. Shanghai serves as the opening stop of four events on the LPGA Tour’s late-season Asian Swing, with subsequent tournaments scheduled in South Korea, Malaysia, and Japan.

Yang Takes Second Place Ahead of Ruoning Yin

With seven birdies and three bogeys on her scorecard, LPGA Tour champion Yang—who has won six times on the circuit—shot a 68 on Saturday. She sits alone in second place at 8-under, one stroke ahead of China’s Ruoning Yin, who carded a bogey-free 67.

I think I putted really well today, even better than yesterday, Yang said. I made some mistakes in the middle round, but I think I still did a good job overall.

Yin, looking for another home-crowd victory following her success in 2024, expressed her desire to win again on Sunday. That would — I think that means everything because I wanted to win in front of the home crowd so bad, Yin said.

Fourteen-stroke leaderboards aside, Carlota Ciganda of Spain and Rio Takeda of Japan are tied for fourth position five shots back after both signed for rounds of 71 on Saturday. Alison Lee fired a 67 to vault 18 spots into sixth place at 2-under par, fueled by six birdies.

I would say this course is a beast, Lee said. You know, this obviously isn’t one of our major championships, but especially the first two days, it definitely was playing like it. It was playing challenging. It was playing long.

Australian Grace Kim dropped down the leaderboard with a third-round 75 after entering Saturday tied for second with Yang. Defending champion Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand shot a 74 and stands at even par, tied for ninth place heading into the final round.