Thitikul storms five shots clear
Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul took a firm grip on the Simone Asia-Pacific Cup on Friday, carding a seven-under-par 65 to carry a commanding five-stroke lead into the final round.
Leading jointly with three others overnight, the two-time LPGA Tour winner sank eight birdies to offset a lone bogey at the Pondok Indah Golf Course, amassing a total score of 11-under 133.
She is comfortably ahead of second-placed Da-yeon Lee from South Korea.
Thailand’s Eila Galitsky, the reigning champion of the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific Championship, trailed by an additional shot after posting a solid 69.
Despite her commanding lead, Atthaya acknowledges the challenge posed by KLPGA Tour ace Da-yeon on the final day.
However, if Atthaya can maintain the exceptional performance with both her driver and irons, as seen today, it will be challenging for either Da-yeon or to catch up.
When asked if the title is for her to lose, Atthaya responded: “I don’t know. I mean, who knows what’s going to happen in the future? I don’t know what Da-yeon is going to do tomorrow, she might shoot a really low round.
“Also, I don’t know what I’m going to do. But what I know is I’m going to play the best I can out there and commit to each shot. Whatever result comes out, I’ll take it, especially when I give 100% on it.”
If all goes well, the Thais are also on track to secure the team title, with Atthaya and Jaravee Boonchant holding a five-shot lead over the competition.
Jaravee, tied 19th individually after an even-par 72, contributed to Team Thailand 2 leading comfortably with a total of 10-under 278.
While Team Korea 3’s Da-yeon and partner So-young Lee, along with Min-sol Kim and Hyo-song Lee of Team Korea 5, are tied for second place with matching 283s, they face a tough challenge if they hope to retain the team crown for their country, won by the dynamic duo So-yeon Ryu and Bo-mee Lee in last year’s inaugural edition.
Jaravee, trailing Atthaya by 12 shots, admitted she needs to raise her game to complement her partner’s efforts.
“Well, I’m actually trying to. I mean, I feel like my game is better today compared to yesterday, but I made a couple of mistakes and had one big number on the front nine,” said Jaravee, an LPGA Tour rookie this year.
“But tomorrow, I guess I’ll stick to the plan, try my best, save more pars, and be more aggressive on my birdie putts. I’m trying my best.”
Leading second round scores:
Individual
133: Atthaya Thitikul (Tha) 68-65;
138: Da-yeon Lee (Kor) 68-70;
139: Eila Galitsky (Tha-Am) 70-69;
141: Min-byeol Kim (Kor) 70-71, Hyo-song Lee (Kor-Am) 68-73;
142: Hee-jeong Lim (Kor) 70-72, Min-sol Kim (Kor-Am) 72-70;
143: Diksha Dagar (Ind) 72-71, Nasa Hataoka (Jpn) 72-71, Bianca Pagdanganan (Phi) 73-70, Robyn Choi (Aus) 71-72, You-min Hwang (Kor) 75-68;
144: Saki Baba (Jpn) 71-73, Arianna Lau (Hkg-Am) 73-71, Pei-ying Tsai (Tpe) 71-73, Ashley Lau (Mas) 73-71, Fiona Xu (Nzl) 70-74, Phannarai Meesom-us (Tha) 68-76.
Team
278: Thailand 2 (Atthaya Thitikul 68-65, Jaravee Boonchant 73-72);
283: Korea 3 (Da-yeon Lee 68-70, So-young Lee 74-71), Korea 5 (Min-sol Kim 72-70, Hyo-song Lee 68-73);
284: Korea 4 (You-min Hwang 75-68, Min-byeol Kim 70-71).
