Esther Henseleit remained in contention at the AIG Women's Open on Saturday after Haeran Ryu's back-nine collapse turned a four-shot lead into a crowded chase heading into the final round.
Ryu had started quickly at Royal Lytham and St. Annes, birdying three of her first six holes to stretch her advantage to four. But the difficult back nine, made even more demanding by windy conditions, quickly changed the picture.
The trouble began at the par-5 seventh, where Ryu made bogey. She then dropped shots at No. 8 and later at Nos. 10, 12 and 14, a run that opened the door for the players behind her. Henseleit was one of the golfers still in the mix come Sunday after that shift at the top of the leaderboard.
Yealimi Noh also took advantage of the opening. She birdied Nos. 9, 10 and 11, then added another birdie at No. 16 to move three clear with 18 holes to play. It was a major turnaround for Noh, who entered the week with just seven made cuts in 14 starts, zero top 10s, and no sub-par rounds in an LPGA stroke-play event since April.
Noh's recent stretch had included missed cuts at the KPMG Women's PGA and the Evian, followed by a return to the U.S. to work on her game. That background made Saturday's surge even more notable, especially in a major where the leaderboard kept shifting throughout the afternoon.
For Henseleit, the key takeaway was simple: the championship was still very much alive. With one round left, several players remained within reach, and the volatile finish to Saturday left the AIG Women's Open wide open.
A crowded final round ahead
Henseleit was not the only player left with a chance, but she was part of the group that benefited when Ryu's lead disappeared. In a championship as demanding as this one, surviving the late-day swings mattered as much as making birdies.
That set up a final 18 holes with no shortage of pressure, and no shortage of players capable of making a run.
