Staff WriterIf the Women’s Scottish Open is supposed to be a proving ground for the best players in the world, someone forgot to tell Lottie Woad she’s only just arrived.
The 21-year-old from England, making her first official start on the LPGA Tour as a member, carved up Dundonald Links like a seasoned veteran on Saturday, firing a composed 5-under-par round to grab a two-shot lead heading into the final day at 17-under. It’s her debut at the Women’s Scottish Open, and she’s playing as if the tartan trophy already has her name etched in silver.
“Yeah, I think it’s difficult, always. Definitely stayed patient,” Woad said. “Had a pretty slow start. Especially when she chipped in for eagle and then I had to kind of try and make some birdies. Knew I was hitting it close. So had to just try and keep on doing that, really.”
Keep on doing that, indeed. Woad leads the field in greens in regulation (48/54), birdies made (19), and has only two bogeys across three rounds. That’s not just good golf—that’s major-winning pedigree.
She’s already got a LET win under her belt at the KPMG Women’s Irish Open and made headlines earlier this summer by earning her LPGA Tour card via the Elite Amateur Pathway.
Now, with 18 holes to play, she’s on the brink of joining legends like Rose Zhang and Jin Young Ko as a winner in her first LPGA start as a member.
Not that Woad has the trophy locked up. Breathing down her neck are two seasoned contenders: Sei Young Kim and Nanna Koerstz Madsen, both tied for second at 15-under.
Kim is back in vintage form, having racked up three eagles this week, including her third on the par-5 14th Saturday. It’s the fourth time in her career she’s pulled off that feat in a single tournament. She’s hit the magic number of 201 after 54 holes, tying her best score of the season.
“Depends on what direction, you can get an advantage from the tee shot but from the pin, the second shot, two, ten metres. So I tried to hit the bunker shot. I hit it really solid but when I still get the lie, I can see, oh, it’s going to be — I can make it. But it feels like — oh, yeah,” she said, in the kind of cryptic code that only golfers and crossword enthusiasts can fully appreciate.
Koerstz Madsen, meanwhile, might just be peaking at the right time. The Dane has 18 birdies (tied for second-most in the field), only three bogeys, and just 83 putts—second-fewest of anyone. Her eagle on the par-5 third kickstarted a bogey-free stretch that could make Sunday very interesting.
“I need to go work on my driver right now. I need that to work if I will have a shot tomorrow,” she said. “So yeah, I’m going to spend half an hour on the range and hopefully it will work.”
Lurking in fourth is Hyo Joo Kim at 14-under, after a sizzling seven-birdie Saturday. A win here would be her second of the season, and her first on European soil since 2014.
Then there’s Nelly Korda, sitting quietly in fifth at 12-under after a bogey-free third round that included two birdies and a handful of what-could-have-beens.
“Yeah, bogey-free, definitely missed a couple more greens. Wasn’t hitting it probably as good as I was the first two days,” Korda said. “But there was a tiny bit of a different wind direction.
Yeah, three-putted one of the par 5s for par. That kind of always stings a little bit. But other than that, I made some really good par saves and just didn’t really capitalise on some of my good shots. But that’s golf. That’s okay. I still have tomorrow.”
With 71 players making the cut at +1 or better, there’s still plenty on the line beyond the leaderboard. The top three finishers not already exempt will punch their ticket to the AIG Women’s Open. Right now, Paula Reto (T6), Julia Lopez Ramirez (T8) and Arpichaya Yubol (T18) are poised to join the party.
Reto, who dazzled with a six-birdie front nine on Saturday, summed up the experience: “Yeah, the front nine was sort of just making birdies, good shots, good routines, stuff like that, and also a little bit less windier… So just told myself, give myself some chances and even if par is a good score… ended up being a good day.”
The Women’s Scottish Open has seen plenty of drama over the years, but if Woad can finish what she’s started, it could be a generational shift in motion.
She’d be the first Englishwoman to win the title and the 20th different player to lift a trophy this season, continuing a Tour-wide trend of unpredictability.
And if she does, she’ll do it with the kind of poise that makes you forget she was still playing college golf at Florida State just months ago.
Then again, she also won the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, so nothing about her rise should be surprising anymore.
Sunday awaits. Bring your waterproofs and maybe a flask. The coronation may be early, but the storm’s not over yet.
