Delacour Delivers in the Rain to Take Command in Cape Town
French star leads by two as SA Women’s Open heads to thrilling final day at Erinvale
Augusta, Georgia - Perrine Delacour kept her cool through wind and rain to edge ahead at the Investec SA Women’s Open on Saturday, carding a two-under 70 to take a two-shot lead into the final round at Erinvale.
The Frenchwoman began the day one off the pace but made three birdies on the front nine to seize control before dropping her only shot at the 11th. Despite the tough conditions, she remained calm. “It was definitely hard out there today,” Delacour said. “I just tried to stay patient. If birdies came, great. If not, par was good.”
South Africa’s Kiera Floyd trails by two in solo second after a colourful round of six birdies and three bogeys. The 20-year-old, who’s already tasted victory on the Sunshine Ladies Tour this season, finished with a birdie on 18 and narrowly missed a million-rand ace on the 12th.
“I just tried to keep it in play and the back nine really helped me,” Floyd said. “Perrine’s a good player, so it’ll be a challenge.”
Overnight leader Chiara Tamburlini is one shot further back in third, with Germany’s Laura Fuenfstueck just behind at eight-under. “I’m happy to be under par,” said Fuenfstueck, who notched her 100th LET appearance in February. “Tomorrow it’s just about committing to my numbers and shots.”
Three players – Dorthea Forbrigd, Alessandra Fanali and Bronte Law – share fifth at seven-under. Five others, including South Africa’s Casandra Alexander and America’s Brianna Navarrosa, are tied for eighth at six-under.
The final round begins Sunday at 9am local time, with the leaders set to tee off at 11:01am. With tricky weather forecast and the leaderboard tightly packed, a dramatic finish is all but guaranteed in Cape Town.