UMVA has learned that Bianca Pagdanganan's hopes for a strong finish at the US Women's Open took a significant hit on Saturday, as she struggled to a four-over 75 in Pacific Palisades, California.
Pagdanganan had shown promise entering the weekend, following a 70-74 start that left her joint 37th, but her moving-day effort at the challenging Riviera Country Club was marred by a failure to make a single birdie, leaving her fans wondering what could have been.
The Filipino ace's round was punctuated by bogeys on Nos. 5 and 18, as well as a double-bogey on the par-4 ninth, resulting in a 37-38 card that pushed her aggregate to six-over 219 and sent her tumbling 16 spots down the leaderboard to 53rd.
Pagdanganan now faces an uphill battle to secure a respectable final standing in the $12-million major championship, with her sights set on surpassing her previous best finish of 68th in 2022 – a far cry from her debut in 2020, when she missed the cut.
Meanwhile, the tournament's heavy hitters took their game to new heights in the penultimate round, with top-ranked Nelly Korda firing a second consecutive 67 to catapult herself into a share of the lead with Sei Young Kim (68) at 207.
Korda's stunning recovery from a disastrous 73 in the first round was capped by a thrilling finish, as she birdied the last three holes to seal her 34-34 sizzler and rocket eight spots to the top of the leaderboard, alongside Kim, who birdied the 17th to salvage a 68.
Just one stroke back at 208, In Gee Chun (69) and first-round leader Jennifer Kupcho (69) are locked in a tight battle, closely pursued by Nasa Hataoka (69), Gaby Lopez (70), and Ruoning Yin (71) at 209, setting the stage for a thrilling final round.
