Dubai: Anne Van Dam, the 2016 Dutch Golfer of the Year, is within striking distance of a winning her second title on the Ladies European Tour (LET) after clutching on to the lead on the penultimate day of the Omega Dubai Ladies Classic.
The 22-year-old, whose only other LET victory came in the 2016 Xiamen Open China, endured a rollercoaster third round at the Emirates Golf Club on Friday, when she baulked at several birdie chances to card a two-under 70.
Only 18 holes stand between her and the new Classic trophy and a share of the €500,000 (Dh2.16 million) winner’s purse, the fourth most valuable on the tour.
“It was a bit up and down. My tee shots were not so good on the front nine but my iron game was pretty good,” she acknowledged.
“There were quite some good things also. On some little shots I struggled a little bit, but I would say overall, 2-under is fine today.
“And then on the back nine, I would say towards the end, I got better off the tee. Just some poor irons. But yeah, also subpoena good up-and-downs. It was a bit of everything today.”
In Sunday’s final round, Van Dam will be going out with Angel Yin, who had interviewed her in the Press Centre on Thursday, and who lurks just one shot away.
“I think she likes me so much. She said this morning she needed a low one, and I think it was really impressive,” said the Dutch player.
“It’s quite windy out there. I don’t know what she had, 7-under, 8-under, something like that, so it’s pretty good.
“Should be fun to play again with her tomorrow and should be a great battle, definitely.”
Yin remarked: “You told me yesterday that I had to work for it when I was interviewing Anne, so today, I was like, I’ve got to play with her.”
