Former major champions Ashleigh Buhai and Minjee Lee took the 54-hole lead on a chilly and windy day at the BMW Ladies Championship on Saturday in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
Buhai, the first-round leader, shot a three-under 69 to recapture a share of the lead and stand at 12-under for the tournament. Lee, the second-round leader, finished with a 71 at Seowon Hills at Seowon Valley Country Club.
Defending champion Lydia Ko (69) and Alison Lee (70) are one shot behind on 11-under and tied for third.
Buhai, of South Africa, opened the tournament Thursday with a blistering 62 but followed that with a 73 as players fought the gusty winds on Friday to stand two shots behind Australia's Lee.
But Buhai was one of three players on Saturday to finish without a bogey, and a birdie on No 17 moved her into the co-share of the lead.
Stephanie Meadow is level-par having recovered from Friday's frustrating 78 to card a one-under 71.
Reflecting on her round, Buhai said: "I'm happy with the way I played. I stayed very patient out there.I think I managed the wind a little better. It wasn't as tricky, but still gusted. I think yesterday kind of helped us figure it out.
"But bogey-free, you've always got to be happy with that."
Lee followed two birdies in the first 11 holes with bogeys on No 12 and 13. A birdie at No 15 sent her to the clubhouse at 12-under.
She is searching for her 10th LPGA Tour victory and could do it in SouthKorea, where her parents are from.
Another Australian, Ko, is the only player this week to record three consecutive rounds under 70. Her parents also have Korea roots, and should she win on Sunday, she'd become the first two-time winner of the BMW Ladies Championship.
"I'm grateful for the opportunity to be somewhat around I think maybe a couple shots or whatever behind the leader. It would be really cool to beable to defend obviously being here in Korea," she said.
"But there's still a lot of golf to be played, and there's so many potentially especially good low scorers out there. So I'm just going to go out there and have fun and hopefully play some good golf myself tomorrow."
