Chiara Tamburlini is the player to catch at the Joburg Ladies Open after a flawless six-under 67 on Saturday moved the Swiss rookie six shots clear on 14-under par.
Chasing a maiden Ladies European Tour (LET) win, and trailing South Africa's Nadia van der Westhuizen by one shot prior to play, Tamburlini got off to a hot start with birdie on the picturesque par-five at Modderfontein Golf Club to move into a share of the lead.
She would follow this up with back-to-back birdies on the fifth and sixth before extending her lead further with a birdie on the par-five eighth.
A monster putt birdie on the par-three 11th put Tamburlini in cruise control on 13-under par. After five straight pars, and with van der Westhuizen dropping fours shots, the Swiss star would hit one of the shots of the day on the par-four 17th for a kick-in birdie. A par on the final hole would then secure the 67 (-6).
"It just feels amazing to be honest!" the 24-year-old said. "I played really solid again today from start to end basically. I’m just really excited to go in to tomorrow with a six shot lead.
"Some really good putting today. Some really good recovery shots. Just honestly through the board pretty good from tee to green. I had a couple missed tee shots on the back nine but with my short game I was able to keep going and keep the score card clean. Overall a really good performance."
Six shots adrift sits her other playing partner from Saturday, Thailand’s Aunchisa Utama. Spain’s Luna Sobron Galmes led the biggest charge on moving day as she made seven birdies in her first 13 holes before a double-bogey halted her momentum when she found water on the 17th.
The Mallorcan shares third place with Czech’s Tereza Melecka on seven-under par thanks to the 68. Panama's Laura Sluman and India's Diksha Dagar share fifth on six-under par.
Castlewarden's Lauren Walsh posted her first under-par round of the week, hitting a one-under 72 to move to two over in a share of 41st place ahead of Sunday's final round. Walsh hit three under on the front nine but made two bogeys on the back nine.
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