Jeneath Wong (Royal and Ancient Photo)

Added to earlier rounds of 65 and 69, Wong has compiled a 15-under-par total of 198.

Tied for second place on 12-under-par 201 heading into the final round are Koreans Soomin Oh (66) and Sumin Hong (69), the halfway leader. There is then a three-stroke gap back to a third Korean contender, Yunseo Yang (67), and Australian Jazy Roberts (70) who are tied for fourth place.

China duo Yujie Liu (64) and Ying Xu (66), Thailand’s Pimmada Wongthanavimok (66), and New Zealand’s Eunseo Choi (67) are also eyeing the rewards on offer to the champion. They share sixth place on eight-under-par 205.

International Women’s Day

To commemorate International Women’s Day, the Vietnam Golf Association presented players, female officials, and spectators with flowers on the 1st and 10th tees and at the clubhouse. On the stunning links layout, participants blossomed as the strong winds that marked the first two days relented.

With red figures – signifying birdies – dominating the leaderboard, the six-strong China contingent alone made 43 birdies on the day, no fewer than ten of them belonging to Liu, who matched her compatriot Ren Yijia and pace-setting Wong for the low round of the day.

Two shots off the pace in second place overnight, 20-year-old Wong, in her third and penultimate year at California’s Pepperdine University, was a model of consistency, finding fairways and greens with consistent regularity. Her touch with the putter was also outstanding.

Blistering Wong

“This week, just minimizing bogeys is one of the main goals, and then just keeping it on the fairways and greens,” said Wong, who has fond memories of playing in Vietnam, having won an individual bronze medal for her country here in the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in 2022.

Wong, 123rd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking® (WAGR®), hit the front for first time with her fourth birdie of the day at the long 7th.

From that point, she was never out of the top spot, picking up further shots at the 8th and 15th. Showing no signs of taking her foot off the pedal, Wong holed from ten feet for birdie at the short 17th and then made a brilliant up-and-down from a sandy waste area left of the green to gain another stroke at the last.

Although they trail by three, Oh and Hong both believe they have the capability to overhaul Wong and become the first name from the Republic of Korea to be inscribed on the winner’s trophy.

Oh, the highest rated player in the field at ninth in the WAGR®, continued her trend of improving each day – a 68 on day one followed by a 67 in round two and now a 66, despite mixing two bogeys with five birdies and an eagle-three at the 10th.

Oh my goodness

There, she produced one of the shots of the week, a towering fairway wood approach from 240 yards that threatened to disappear into the cup for an albatross-two. Her ball finally came to rest inches from the cup for a tap-in three.

“I will always be happy on the course. Even if I make a mistake, it’s okay, I’m not depressed. I really do not mind at all,” said Oh, who will carry her carefree approach into the final round.

She added, “To be honest, I have not thought about winning this championship. But now I’m picturing that if I won, it would be a huge honour, not only for myself. I would become the first Korean to win the WAAP, so it would be a great honour.”

Struggle for Hong

It was not plain sailing for Hong, who struggled to reproduce her form of the first two days. When she double-bogeyed the 16th to go one-over for the day, her race appeared to be run. However, she proceeded to hole short putts at the 17th for birdie and 18th for eagle to sign for a 69 and haul herself back into the picture.

“I was not expecting to be one of the leading players after the third round. I’m just focused on my game. I’m happy to be playing with Soomin in the final round because we’re so close. That will make me very comfortable and confident,” said Hong, 221st in the WAGR®.

Leading Thailand’s bid to maintain their proud record of having a top-three finisher every year since the WAAP’s inauguration in 2018 is Wongthanavimok. “I would say that Mother Nature was a little kind to us today. There was only a slight breeze and it made the game way easier,” said Wongthanavimok, in her third year at the University of Arizona.

Home hopes

Chuc An Le, the only Vietnamese player to make the cut, continued her good showing with an even-par 71, putting her in a tie for 29th on 214.

Developed by the APGC and The R&A to nurture talent and provide a pathway for the region’s elite women amateurs to the international stage, the WAAP provides the champion with life-changing opportunities. 

The winner at Hoiana Shores will be invited to compete in three of this year’s major championships – the AIG Women’s Open, Amundi Evian Championship and the Chevron Championship – as well as the Hana Financial Group Championship, ISPS Handa Australian Open, the 122nd Women's Amateur Championship and, by tradition, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.