Bettel Carries Three-Shot Lead into Final Round of Clover Cup
MESA, Ariz. – Sunday at the Clover Cup is shaping up to be a day of opportunity for the Kentucky women’s golf team with the Wildcats entering the final round in third place and senior Leonie Bettel leading the field.
Despite some early adversity to begin the round for the second day in a row, Kentucky gained its composure, turned front-nine bogeys into back-nine birdies, and stayed near the top of the leaderboard in third place.
Leonie Bettel is atop that individual leaderboard for the second day in a row with a score 3-under par. The field got within striking distance – three strokes – after Bettel’s second-round 74, but her first-round 67 gave her enough cushion to take a three-shot lead into Sunday’s final round at the Longbow Golf Club (par 72, 6,184 yards).
She will be playing for her third individual championship of the season, which would move her just one win shy of Kate Rogerson (1987-88) for the most tournament titles in UK single-season school history.
Another big day for Bettel could spell a big finish for Kentucky, which has plenty to play for Sunday as well. UK fired a 301 Saturday and is in third place at 23-over par. UK is seeking its third top-three finish of the season and third straight top-five showing in the Clover Cup.
“For the second day in a row, the front nine gave us fits,” said assistant coach Brian May, who is filling in for head coach Golda Borst this weekend. “Some of the hole locations were a bit tougher today and our girls did not adjust very well. I saw some passive and uncommitted golf shots early in the round today. However, I am proud of our grit through the middle of the round and how we played the par 5s on the back nine. We have one more good opportunity tomorrow to show our confidence and determination. If we do that, we are capable of something special.”
UK is just a shot behind No. 24 Oklahoma. USC, the top-ranked team in the country, leads the field at 9-over par.
The finale will begin Sunday at 11 a.m. with a shotgun start. Live scoring will continue to be available at BirdieFire.com.
Bettel will tee off with Jennifer Chang from USC and Libby Winans from Oklahoma. She leads Chang by two shots and Winans by five.
Bettel’s second round wasn’t as sharp as Friday’s but she still recorded four birdies on the day. Three straight bogeys in the middle of her front nine set her back slightly, but she birdied No. 13 and No. 15 and then parred the final three holes to get to her current 36-hole total of 141.
Three Wildcats are in the top 25 with sophomore Rikke Svejgård Nielsen and freshman Casey Ott, who won Southeastern Conference Women’s Freshman Golfer of the Week a few weeks ago, at 8-over par. They matched each other for a second day in a row with a pair of 76s and are both tied for 25th.
Junior Sarah Shipley fired the second-best Wildcat round of the day with a 75 to move up into a tie for 33rd. She’s at 10-over par overall after a four-birdie second round.
Sophomore Sarah Fite, competing for the team score for the first time this season, rebounded from a difficult round Friday with a 77 on the second day of competition. She’s a 15-over par for the tournament, tied for 56th.
Junior Josephine Chang, competing as an individual, couldn’t sustain her Friday moment. After a 76 in the opening round, she’s tied for 63rd at 16-over par after a second-round 84.
For the latest on the Kentucky women’s golf team, follow the team on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.
