Choi Hye-jin leads wire-to-wire, eyes first LPGA win in Shanghai

Choi Hye-jin held the lead for the third consecutive round at the Buick LPGA Shanghai, the opening event of the LPGA Tour's Asian swing.

Choi carded a 3-under-par 69 on Saturday at Seosan Golf Club (par 72, 6,735 yards) in Shanghai, China, posting four birdies against one bogey to reach a 54-hole total of 9-under-par 207 and hold a one-stroke advantage over Yang Hee-young in second place.

Choi, who joined the LPGA Tour in 2022, now has a chance to claim her first tour victory in wire-to-wire fashion. A prolific winner with 12 titles on the domestic circuit, she has yet to lift a trophy in the United States despite finishing runner-up six times.

Choi was near-flawless on the front nine, making four birdies without a bogey. A standout moment came at the par-4 7th hole, where she struck her second shot from a bare lie behind a tree to within four meters of the pin and converted the birdie. She followed that with another birdie at the par-5 8th, sticking her third shot to within three meters and holing out on consecutive holes.

The back nine proved more difficult, however, as Choi dropped one stroke. At the par-4 15th, a chip shot came up short and resulted in her only bogey of the day. At the par-5 18th, she gave herself a birdie chance by placing her third shot 1.2 meters from the pin, but had to settle for par.

Playing partner Yang Hee-young closed with a tap-in birdie at the 18th after her chip from 20 yards grazed the cup and stopped 20 centimeters away, pulling to within one stroke of Choi heading into the final round. Yang finished 4-under-par for the day with seven birdies and three bogeys to claim sole second place. She won her sixth LPGA Tour title at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, a major, in June 2024.

China's Yin Ruoning, playing on her home course, fired a bogey-free 5-under-par round to move into sole third place at 7-under-par 137 for the tournament, earning a spot in the final pairing. Yin previously delivered a team gold medal for China at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

Japan's Rio Takeda and Spain's Carlota Ciganda each shot 1-under-par to share fourth place at 4-under-par 140.