Miyu Yamashita extended her substantial lead, while Canadian young golfer Aphrodite Deng made significant progress on Saturday at the CPKC Women’s Open in Edmonton. Yamashita from Japan delivered an impressive 5-under-par 65 in the third round, bringing her total to 19 under at Edmonton’s Royal Mayfair Golf Club. With a commanding six-stroke advantage heading into Sunday, she aims for her fourth LPGA victory and second of the season.
The 25-year-old bounced back from a lone bogey on the 17th hole with a final birdie on the 18th, expressing her fondness for the course and her strong putting performance. Her 54-hole score of 191 set a new tournament record, matching the record for the largest 54-hole lead.
In pursuit of Yamashita, Gina Kim of the U.S. carded a 6-under 64, and Japan’s Yuri Yoshida shot a 66 to trail at 13 under. Meanwhile, 16-year-old Calgary native Aphrodite Deng, who was the top amateur last year, surged up the leaderboard with the lowest round of the day at 63, reaching 10 under and sharing sixth place.
Deng was among four Canadian female golfers aged 18 and under who made the cut, a first for the tournament. Vancouver’s Anna Huang, along with amateur players Michelle Xing from Richmond Hill, Ont., and Clairey Lin from Langley, B.C., continued their impressive performances over the weekend rounds.
Defending champion Brooke Henderson from Smiths Falls, Ont., managed to recover from early struggles to finish at 7 under. Despite trailing Yamashita by 12 strokes, Henderson remains optimistic about her performance and aims to finish strong in the final round.
The weather forecast for the last day of the tournament predicts a temperature of 26C with possible forest fire smoke clearing up later in the day, giving way to potential thunderstorms.
