Portugal Colonial - American Ewing fires 67 to seize one-stroke LPGA lead

The 29-year-old American opened the front and back nines with birdies and birdied all four par-5 holes to stand on 16-under 200 after 54 holes at Kenwood Country Club in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Fassi, chasing her first LPGA triumph, shot 67 as well to stand second with China's Lin Xiyu third on 202 after a 70.

Thailand's Ariya Jutanugarn, South Korean Lee6 Jeong-eun, Australian Sarah Kemp and American Megan Khang shared fourth on 204 with South Korean Kim A-lim on 205 and American Andrea Lee on 206.

Ewing, the tour leader at reaching greens in regulation, seeks her third LPGA title after the 2020 Drive On Championship at Lake Oconee and 2021 LPGA Match Play.

World number 52 Ewing, who began the day two back of leader Lee6, opened with a birdie and added two more on the par-5 second and fourth holes to take the lead.

After seven pars, Lee6 birdied the par-3 eighth from six feet to grab a share of the lead, but Ewing landed her approach at the 10th at the edge of the hole for a tap-in birdie to restore her solo lead at 15-under.

Ewing dropped her approach inches from the cup at the par-5 12th to set up another birdie that gave her a two-stroke edge.

Fassi lofted a spectacular hole-out eagle from the fairway at the par-5 15th to leap into second at 15-under.

But Ewing answered by rolling in an eight-foot downhill putt at the 15th to reach 17-under, boosting her lead back to two and completing a set of Saturday birdies on all par-5 holes.

Ewing found a greenside bunker at 17, her first missed green in regulation of the day, but pitched to three feet and sank her par putt.

At 18, Ewing was short of the green and pitched 18 feet past the hole, then missed her par putt for her lone bogey of the round.

Fassi had four birdies in the first seven holes before her lone bogey at the eighth and finished with nine pars and an eagle.

Lin, the 18-hole leader after an opening 64, opened with a birdie, answered her lone bogey at the fifth with a birdie at the sixth and added a final birdie at the 16th hole.

Lin, making her 188th career LPGA start, seeks her first tour title. Her best LPGA finish was in March at Thailand, when she lost a playoff to Denmark's Nanna Koerstz Madsen.

World number 43 Lee6, 26, faded with bogeys at 15 and 17. She won her only major and LPGA title at the 2019 US Women's Open, the same year she collected the LPGA Rookie of the Year award.

Canada's Brooke Henderson, who won her second major title at July's Evian Championship, fired a 69 on her 25th birthday to share 10th on 207 with Sweden's Anna Nordqvist and South Korea's An Na-rin.

A.Seabra--PC