A birdie on 18 on Saturday saw Ahleigh Buhai sign for a one-over-par 71 in the third round of the US Women’s Open at Lancaster Country Club in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
In the context of the championship – as well as her own performance, it was a good round as she climbed into a share of 34th. It was her best round of the championship after she opened with a 74 and followed it with a second-round 73.
Buhai made two other birdies, and kept the big numbers off her card, making just four bogeys. At eight-over for the championship, she was 13 strokes off the lead, which was shared between former champion Minjee Lee of Australia, second-round leader Wichanee Meechai of Thailand, and American Andrea Lee. Minjee Lee’s four-under 66 was the best score of those three, and it included an eagle three at the seventh.
While Buhai kept the big numbers off the card, Casandra Alexander was not so lucky. The only other South African in the field had a quadruple-bogey nine on the par-five seventh. She hit her approach into a bunker over the green, just over 10 metres from the hole, and then hit that bunker shot into the water on the other side. She dropped in the fairway, and then dumped her fifth in the water too. She got her seventh shot on to the green and two-putted for her nine.
She unfortunately also made a double-bogey six on the third hole after opening on one with a bogey. Bogeys on eight and 10 meant her two birdies on five and six were not too helpful as she signed for a seven-over-par 77 and slipped to a share of 69th.
