Diaz, Pace tied for lead after third round of Marathon Classic
7/19/2014Laura Diaz and Lee-Anne Pace are tied for the lead after today's third round of the LPGA Marathon Classic at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania.
Diaz and Pace are 11-under par at 202. Diaz shot an even-par 71 today, while Pace shot a 3-under par 68.
PHOTO GALLERY: Click here for photos of the third round
PHOTO GALLERY: Click here for more photos from Day 3
Diaz was able to stay in contention despite taking a one-stroke penalty on the fourth hole, the result of a miscue by her caddie. As her caddie brushed away a twig near her ball, another twig inadvertently moved her ball, resulting in the penalty. Diaz self-reported the penalty.
“He was trying to be helpful and trying to move the stick," Diaz said. "When he came in the two sticks collided and moved the ball. It’s an accident. It could have happened to anybody.
“The fact of the matter is, he’s trying to help me, so there was no reason or need to get upset. There’s nothing we could do about it. I had hit a bad tee shot, and I had put myself in a bad position. It’s unfortunate what happened but you just go with the flow.”
Pace pulled into contention despite bogeying the par-4 11th and 12th holes, but rebounded to birdie 13, 14 and 17.
"I was so tired in the beginning of the week, and now this happened, so I'm very excited," Pace said. "I did miss a lot of putts in the beginning but a 68's always a good round. I'm never going to laugh at that. I'm happy with that."
Jaye Marie Green and So Yeon Ryu are tied for third with a 10-under-par 203. Green, an LPGA rookie, had a third-round low score of 63. Green birdied nine holes today, including four consecutive birdies on the 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th holes.
"I wasn't feeling great this morning," Green said. "I felt just down. So when I birdied the first hole I was like, okay, let's go. When I finished the turn at 4‐under I was like, All right, my goal is to get to 10. To finish at 10 [-under] was huge for me."
Stacy Lewis, the No. 1 golfer in the Rolex Rankings, is in a 13-way tie for 23rd after shooting a 3-under par 68. Through three rounds, Lewis is 5-under par at 208. 2013 champion Beatriz Recari is also tied for 23rd after shooting a 1-under par 71.
The final round begins at 7:13 a.m. Sunday at Highland Meadows. Pace and Diaz tee off from No. 1 at 12:55 p.m.