Ardina fights for redemption as Ryu soars with 64

MANILA, Philippines -- Dottie Ardina struggled on moving day and slipped further down the standings to joint 53rd with a 72 in the third round of the CPKC Women’s Open, now led by Korean Haeran Ryu in Alberta, Canada Saturday.

Eager to recover from a second round 75, Ardina stumbled with an early miscue on No. 2. Though she birdied the par-3 No. 5, she failed to capitalize, settling for seven straight pars before dropping another shot on the 13th.

She quickly regained her composure with a birdie on the par-5 14th but ran out of holes to mount a significant rally.

With rounds of 35-37, she posted a 54-hole aggregate of 219, slipping seven spots from a previous tie for 46th place heading into the final 18 holes of the $2.6 million championship, which serves as the final tune-up for the Olympic hopefuls.

Ardina, who came off an impressive joint seventh place finish at the Dana Open last week, hopes to find her form before the Paris Games. However, her current performance leaves much to be desired, although there are still 18 holes remaining for redemption.

Ardina will make her Olympic debut in Paris on Aug. 7-10, joining two-time Olympic veteran and ICTSI teammate Bianca Pagdanganan, who also has not had much momentum heading into the Quadrennial Games after missing the cut Friday.

Ryu, meanwhile, birdied the first four holes to grab the lead and stayed on top for the rest of the day, punctuating her brilliant 64 at the Earl Grey Golf Club with an eagle on No. 14 for a 13-under 203 total.

Former leader Lauren Coughlin, however, is just a shot behind at 204 after a 66, setting the stage for a final round shootout as Mao Saigo and Rose Zhang lie five strokes behind Ryu with 208s after scoring 61 and 66, respectively.