ROUND 3
FRIDAY
OCTOBER 29, 2021
ISSUE 3
Maria Fassi has a chance to go wire-to-wire but at least 12 players will have other ideas heading into the final round at Emirates Golf Club.
CLASSIC CLIFFHANGER
By Kent Gray – Editor, Golf Digest Middle East
M
aria Fassi is glad she still has a “target on her back” but isn’t half as relieved as Jessica Karlsson who is starting to believe she won’t have to rush back to school teaching anytime soon. The Mexican LPGA Tour player and sometimes math and science teacher from Sweden will begin the final round of the 15th Dubai Moonlight Classic presented by EGA in pole-position on Friday, albeit with their noses just ahead of a tightly bunched grid plotting their overtaking moves. Thailand’s highly-decorated Jutanugarn sisters, Ariya and Moriya, and Spaniard Nuria Iturrioz, the 2018 champion here, are among 11 players within four shots heading into the final round of the €260,000 Ladies European Tour event on The Faldo. After a course-record equalling 63 in Wednesday’s opening round, Fassi emerged from a frustrating Thursday just one stroke better to par, a 71 getting her to -10. Karlsson, meanwhile, added a 68 to her opening 66 to surprisingly find herself joint leader. “I didn’t know I was tied for the lead,” Karlsson said afterwards. “The photographer told me when I was walking in from the last hole. That’s good news.” So too is Karlsson’s welcome return to form, indeed that she gets to play golf at all after her return to the game via the COVID-19 lockdown didn’t quite go to plan. “It was a little bit tough at the start of the year. I played some really bad golf because it had been one-and-a-half years since I had played tournament golf. I was a maths
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and science teacher last autumn, which was really good. “It was hard to readjust. I have had a lot of time with my mental coach and he has really helped me with that part of my game and my readjustment. “I’m just going to enjoy it and have fun. I have my brother on the bag, so I’m just going to have a lot of fun!” After the fireworks of Wednesday, Fassi was simply pleased to get it into the clubhouse without any damage done yesterday. “It was a bit of a struggle out there today; I couldn’t get anything going and had to save pars every three or four holes so it was hard to build momentum that I had yesterday. “[But] I went out with a target on my back today and I still have it at the end of the day so that’s good, and hopefully some more putts drop tomorrow. “I hit it splendid yesterday and it was average today, and I couldn’t get the few opportunities I had for birdie to go in, so if I clean up with the irons and get a couple more putts to drop, I’ll be in good shape tomorrow.” ◼
POISED WITH PACE Lee-Anne Pace, a 10-time LET winner, is the closest challenger despite near cart-path calamity. PAGE 2
FINAL ROUND TEE TIMES Plan your viewing pleasure with all the groups and tee times for Friday on The Faldo. PAGE 4
IT'S ALRIGHT WITH DWIGHT Former Man United striker Dwight Yorke is a big fan of Dubai’s annual LET stop. PAGE 5
BLISTER SISTERS Philippa Stewart, Head Physio for the LET, on the injuries keeping her busy this and every week. PAGE 7
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