Yealimi Noh produced the round of the day to take a three-shot lead into the final round of the AIG Women’s Open, with Lottie Woad and Charley Hull both giving home fans reason to believe at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

The American carded a third-round 69 to reach seven-under-par, three clear of a five-strong chasing group. It was not a smooth ride: two early bogeys on the fourth and fifth were followed by a birdie on six, another dropped shot on seven, then three consecutive birdies from nine through 11 and a fourth on 16 to close out the best round of her week.

Noh had endured a lean run of form before this week and was open about the turnaround. “I have had a rough year so far, golf is crazy, it just takes one week, one round to switch it and play a whole different game,” she said. “I really focused on my tempo on the back nine.” Asked how she felt about closing out a first major title, she added: “I feel pretty ready. There’s so much golf left and so much left to do. I want to go out there and enjoy it.”

Woad holds her nerve in the wind

Lottie Woad matched par on the toughest day of the week so far, a 70 leaving her in solo seventh at three-under and firmly in major contention for the second time this season. The Englishwoman had been as far back as seven shots off the lead but steadied herself with a run of pars before a birdie at 16 pushed her to three-under.

“That back nine was playing very tough with that wind, probably the strongest it’s been all week,” Woad said. “Eventually I knew that 16 would be a good chance and managed to capitalise on that.” On her position heading into Sunday, she added: “It feels great to be in the mix. Obviously it’s always the goal to do that. I’m just going to try my best tomorrow.”

Hull fights back from a rocky start

Charley Hull sits in a share of eighth at two-under after recovering from three-over through her first six holes. The Englishwoman missed three short putts early on before a back-nine revival built around a stiff 5-iron approach at 15 and a tight sand wedge at 16.

“I played like a ten handicapper for the first six holes,” Hull admitted. “But no, I was pretty happy with the way I finished.” On the position at the top of the leaderboard, she said she was not putting pressure on herself: “I just want to go out there and enjoy it tomorrow. Just go out there and have fun and trust my swing.”

The chasing pack

Five players sit tied for second at four-under, three shots back of Noh. Esther Henseleit produced the low round of the day among the group, a 67 built on five birdies against a single dropped shot at 15. “There are so many subtle little breaks and normally we play greens with bigger slopes, so you just have to trust your line,” the German said.

American Lucy Li shot 69 to join the group, highlighted by a birdie at 17 and a closing par save. Two-time reigning major champion Haeran Ryu, who had led overnight, fell back with a 74. “It was impossible to make pars,” the Korean said of the tougher conditions, while insisting the tournament remained wide open: “This is a major and nobody knows who will win over the weekend.” Jeeno Thitikul and Shiho Kuwaki complete the group at four-under.

The final round tees off at 8.35am BST on Sunday, with the last group — Noh and Henseleit — out at 2.35pm BST at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

Full leaderboard HERE – Round 4 tee times HERE – For all AIG Women’s Open News