PORTLAND – Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., has qualified to play in this week’s Cambia Portland Classic on the LPGA Tour.

Henderson, 17, shot a four-under 68 at Columbia Edgewater Country Club to grab one of two spots available in the field this week. She joins sister Brittany, who received a sponsor exemption, in the field in Portland. Brittany Henderson, who plays on the Symetra Tour, was granted a sponsor’s exemption, a spot that might have gone to Brooke, except she has already received her maximum seven for the year.

If Henderson had not qualified Monday, she would have caddied for Brittany – something she did during the LPGA qualifying tournament last year. Brittany has caddied for Brooke five times this year, including at the U.S. Women’s Open and Women’s British Open.

“I love it,” Brooke Henderson said. “She’s a great caddie. I’m not sure how good I am, but she’s great. We know each other so well, so we know what to say when things aren’t going well, and when things are going well, to keep us going.”

Florida’s Doris Chen, a University of South California graduate, claimed the other Monday qualifier spot.

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – Four Canadians have advanced through to stage II of LPGA Qualifying School after finishing inside the top-60 following Sunday’s final round at the Mission Hills Country Club.

Megan Osland, a 22-year-old amateur from Kelowna, B.C., finished as the low Canadian at T12 with a score of 2-under (73-72-69-72). The recent San José State graduate is coming off a two-win NCAA season with the Spartans and will look to keep the ball rolling in stage II in October.

Laura Demarco, also 22, finished in a tie for 39^th at 2-over par (76-68-72-74). The LaSalle, Ont., native placed fifth earlier this year in the Investors Group Ontario Women’s Amateur.

Nineteen-year-old Christina Foster of Concord, Ont., and Team Canada’s Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., shared a T48 finish to round out the Canadians advancing to stage II.

Stage II of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament will be held from Oct. 22–25 at the Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Fla.

Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying School will feature the top-80 scorers from Stage II and will run from Dec. 2–6 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Click here for full scoring.

Louise Suggs, an LPGA founder and among the best women to ever play with 61 wins and 11 majors, died Friday. She was 91.

The LPGA Tour said she died in a hospice in Sarasota, Florida, of natural causes.

Suggs was perhaps the most influential player in LPGA history. Along with being one of the 13 founders in 1950, she served as LPGA president three times and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame and the LPGA Teach and Professional Hall of Fame.

“I feel like the LPGA lost a parent,” Commissioner Mike Whan said. “But I’m extremely confident that her vision, her competitiveness, and most importantly her spirit, will be with this organization forever.”

The LPGA Tour rookie of the year award is named after Suggs. She won every season of her professional career and was the first player to capture the career Grand Slam at the 1957 LPGA Championship.

She finished her career with $190,251 in earnings.

A steady presence at LPGA’s biggest events, her support of women’s golf never wavered and Suggs never lost her sharp tongue. She was at the LPGA awards dinner in 2007 where Angela Park won the Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year award by earning $983,922.

“I wish like hell I could have played for this kind of money,” Suggs said. “But if not for me, they wouldn’t be playing for it, either.”

Her efficient, powerful swing marked her for greatness as a teenager in Georgia. She began to get national acclaim when she won the 1947 U.S. Women’s Amateur, the 1948 Women’s British Amateur and the 1949 U.S. Women’s Open, beating fierce rival Babe Zaharias by 14 shots.

Ben Hogan once said after watching Suggs swing that her swing “combines all the desirable elements of efficiency, timing and co-ordination.”

“It appears to be completely effortless,” Hogan said. “Yet despite her slight build, she is consistently as long off the tee and through the fairway as any of her feminine contemporaries in competitive golf.”

Bob Hope once nicknamed her “Miss Sluggs” for how far she could hit the ball.

“Like a parent, she cared deeply for her LPGA family and took great pride in their successes,” Whan said. “She always made time to hear my problems and challenges. Her personal guidance was priceless. Like a parent, I think she was even more proud of the LPGA players of today than she was of her own playing results”.

Born in Atlanta on Sept. 7, 1923, she began playing golf on the Lithia Springs golf course that her father managed. She won the Georgia Women’s Amateur twice, the North and South three times and the Women’s Western Amateur twice.

She was a contemporary of the great Bobby Jones, her idol in Georgia. And long before Annika Sorenstam made headlines for playing on the PGA Tour, Suggs had her own famous competition against the men.

She took part in a 72-hole exhibition on what she once described as an executive course in West Palm Beach, Florida, in 1961. It was called the Royal Poinciana Invitational, featuring the likes of Suggs and Patty Berg, Sam Snead and Dow Finsterwald.

Playing 36 holes a day, and lacing her beloved 3-wood onto the greens, Suggs wound up winning. Recounting that event in a 2003 interview with The Associated Press, Suggs said Snead was irritated that he had finished behind a woman and was needling her.

“I finally said, ‘I don’t know what the hell you’re bitching about. You weren’t even second,”’ Suggs said.

She said Snead stormed off to the parking lot and peeled out of the parking lot.

“It was the most perfect squelch I ever heard. He burned a quarter-inch of rubber,” Suggs said.

That story captured the essence of Suggs. She had a drive to succeed and told it how she saw it. The title on her autobiography she published last year: “And That’s That!”

The founders of the LPGA paved the way for today’s game, often going to cities and doing promotions to attract attention. They had to set up the golf courses by themselves and cope with complaints and challenges.

Suggs retired in 1962 from competition, but not from the LPGA Tour.

“Golf is very much like a love affair,” Suggs once said. “If you don’t take it seriously, it’s not fun. But if you do, it breaks your heart. Don’t break your heart, but flirt with the possibility.”

Suggs was the first women elected to the Georgia Athletic Hall of Fame in 1966, paving the way for women to become future inductees. The USGA honoured her with its prestigious Bob Jones Award in 2007. And earlier this year, Suggs was selected to join the Royal & Ancient Golf Club when it finally invited women.

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – National Amateur Squad members Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., Elizabeth Tong of Thornhill, Ont., and Jennifer Ha of Calgary will join 17 other Canucks in Thursday’s opening round of LPGA Qualifying School at the Mission Hills Country Club.

Stage I, commencing from Aug. 6–9, will feature 288 players competing in the 72-hole stroke-play event for one of the top-60 scores that earn a pass through to Stage II of qualifying.

The full list of Canadian players is listed below:

Jessica MacPhee

Sabrina Sapone

Melissa Mabanta

Leilanie Kim

Krista Fenniak

Megan Osland (a)

Robyn Doig

Jennifer Ha (a)

Anna Young (a)

Kyla Inaba

Maya Parsons

Laura DeMarco

Alexa Kim

Brittany Marchand (a)

Aram Choi

Christina Foster

Anna Kim (a)

Joo Youn Seo (a)

Vivian Tsui

Elizabeth Tong (a)

—

Stage II of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament will be held from Oct. 22–25 at the Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Fla.

Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying School will feature the top-80 scorers from Stage II and will run from Dec. 2–6 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Click here for scoring

TURNBERRY, Scotland – As Inbee Park hunted down Jin-Young Ko in the final stretch of the Women’s British Open, it quickly became clear which South Korean was the rookie and which was the player about to add another chapter in golf’s record book.

The top-ranked Park picked up seven shots in her last 12 holes, pressured her 20-year-old protege so much she finally lost her nerve, and completed a 7-under 65 at Turnberry to capture the trophy she thought she may never win.

Park won by three shots on 12-under 276 for a seventh major title, becoming just the seventh female player to win four different majors – after Louise Suggs, Mickey Wright, Pat Bradley, Juli Inkster, Karrie Webb and Annika Sorenstam.

“I don’t know what else to go for now,” said Park, who has won six of the last 14 majors to cement her status as the best player of her generation.

How about ending the debate about clinching the so-called career Grand Slam?

The LPGA Tour is calling Park’s achievement just that. However, Park hasn’t won the France-based Evian Championship since it was given the status of a fifth major in 2013. She did win the Evian in 2012.

The Evian is staged next month, when Park can complete definitively what some are calling the “Super Slam.”

“I feel like I’ve won all the majors in women’s golf,” Park said, attempting to put a stop to the discussion.

“Every major was very, very special to me. But to wrap it up with the British Open is just much more special … This is definitely the golfer’s most-wanted trophy.”

Ko is just at the start of her golfing journey.

Playing her first major, her first tournament outside Asia and with a temporary, locally born caddie giving her advice on every shot, Ko began the last round tied for the lead and pulled three shots clear of a bunched-up chasing pack containing Park after a 20-foot putt for birdie on No. 10. She had already eagled the par-3 No. 7 with a 25-foot putt and rolled in a birdie of similar length at No. 8.

Her composure was stunning, considering the uncharted territory she was in. Ko had never played links golf before this week.

That was when Park made her move. She rolled in an eagle putt from 20 feet at No. 14 to close to within one shot, Ko missed a par putt on No. 13 soon after for her first bogey of the day, and Park then holed a 4-footer for birdie at No. 16 to take the lead for the first time this tournament.

No. 16 wound up being the deciding hole. Twenty minutes later, Ko’s chances of reclaiming the lead virtually ended on that par 4 when she pushed her approach shot straight into a burn. She took her fur-lined puffy coat from her caddie and looked a beaten woman for the first time this week.

“I was a little over-thinking, and then I was a little bit nervous,” Ko said.

Park’s birdie putt on No. 18 lipped out, but it didn’t matter. She watched on a monitor in the scoring hut as Ko – playing two groups behind – failed to make birdie on No. 17, ensuring there would be no final-hole tension.

“I really thought she was going to play really good until the end,” Park said of her friend. “I just got lucky.”

A turning point came on No. 12 when Park drove right, into thick rough. Park could barely see the ball when she approached it, but had a stroke of luck as it had settled on a drain. She was given a free drop and made par.

“That was a definite bogey there,” Park said.

Park said she needed to produce her best display of putting in two years to overhaul Ko, who is the latest on a conveyor belt of talent coming from the South Korean tour.

Ko was bidding to become the third first-time major winner from South Korea in the last five majors, after Hyo-Joo Kim at the Evian last year and In-Gee Chun at the U.S. Women’s Open last month.

“They are machines,” American player Cristie Kerr said of South Korean golfers. “They practice 10 hours a day.”

The 27-year-old Park is the second-youngest player to win the four traditional majors. Webb was 26 when she completed the haul in 2001.

Park passed $12 million in career earnings with the winner’s check of $450,000.

The 18-year-old Lydia Ko was seeking to become the youngest major winner, beating the record of Morgan Pressel by seven months. She was three shots behind her namesake Ko, only to take two shots out of the greenside bunker at No. 12 and make a double-bogey.

She shot 69 and tied for third on 8 under with So Yeon Ryu (68).

Golf Canada Young Pro Squad member signs for an even-par round of 72 and fellow Canadian Alena Sharp posted a 2-over 74.

TURNBERRY, Scotland – There’s a Ko atop the leaderboard after three rounds of the Women’s British Open.

Just not the one many were expecting.

Jin-Young Ko, a 20-year-old South Korean with no links experience and playing in her first major championship, shot a 3-under 69 on Saturday to share the lead with Taiwan’s Teresa Lu heading into the final round at Turnberry. They have an 8-under total of 208.

Ko’s story is all the more remarkable considering she met her temporary caddie for the week – a locally born, 27-year-old digital advertiser called Jeff Brighton – for the first time on Tuesday. She said she is taking advice from Brighton on every stroke, and hasn’t been adapting her usual game for the links despite the wind and rain that has lashed the Ailsa course.

“I give her a number and a line and she just hits it,” Brighton said after the round. “We’re working well. She trusts my numbers.”

Lydia Ko, the No. 2-ranked golfer looking to become the youngest winner of a major at 18, started the third round in a four-way tie for second place, alongside her namesake on 5 under.

The New Zealander recovered from a double-bogey at No. 1 to shoot a 72 and was three strokes off the lead, with top-ranked Inbee Park (69) and Minjee Lee (70).

Park, who has been acting as a mentor for Jin-Young Ko in her compatriot’s start to her career, is bidding to complete a career Grand Slam.

“Having somewhat of a chance on the last day is just a great opportunity,” said Park, who would be the sixth woman to sweep the majors. “You just keep cracking and someday it’s going to crack.”

Second-round leader Suzann Pettersen was a stroke off the lead after shooting 72 on another day of changeable weather in western Scotland. Mika Miyazato of Japan shot 70 to lie on her own in fourth place.

Jin-Young Ko took the lead outright for the first time when she birdied No. 6 and went two shots clear after another birdie on No. 7. She lost the lead when she bogeyed No. 16 after missing the green with her approach from the middle of the fairway, the only poor shot in her round.

Both Ko and Lu birdied No. 17 and parred No. 18.

“I feel nothing, not even nervous or anything,” said Ko, who has won four events on the Korean tour and played only one event on the U.S. LPGA Tour, in South Korea, where she finished tied for 42nd at the 2014 KEB HanaBank Championship.

Asked if it will be a life-changing experience to be a major champion, the 28th-ranked Ko replied: “If I won, my life will be the same.”

Ko is playing in Scotland for the first time and has been shocked by the weather conditions. She said she has never played in such high winds.

“There are many different seasons in one day – sun, rain, wind,” she said, laughing.

The 30th-ranked Lu shot 69, too, and was also chasing a first major title. She rolled a birdie putt just wide on the 18th hole that would have given her the outright lead.

“I have to try to stay relaxed,” Lu said, “because it’s going to be a tough day tomorrow.”

Rain is forecast all Sunday.

Park has seven come-from-behind victories, including two in major championships – at the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open and 2014 Women’s PGA Championship.

“Three back is not that bad,” Park said.

Alena Sharp shoots a third-round 77 while Brooke Henderson signed for a 79.

TURNBERRY, Scotland – If the first day of the Women’s British Open was all about Donald Trump, the second day belonged to Suzann Pettersen.

The Norwegian took a two-stroke lead into the weekend after being one of just two players to break 70 in a soggy second round at Turnberry that left many in the 144-woman field scurrying for shelter and bemoaning the un-summerlike conditions.

Out at 6.41 a.m. Friday in the second group, Pettersen shot a 3-under 69 for a score that only looked better and better as a grueling day on the wind-beaten Ailsa links wore on. Maria McBride of Sweden was the only player to beat Pettersen’s score with a bogey-free 66 but was still way off the pace after an opening-round 79.

“I was in 100 percent control of the ball, the flight, the spin, everything you need to do in conditions like this,” said the sixth-ranked Pettersen, who called it one of the best rounds of her career. “It felt like I was pulling off every shot I was standing over.”

Pettersen’s 7-under 137 put her two shots clear of a quartet tied for second that included Lydia Ko, who shot a 73 in some of the worst conditions in the afternoon, when the winds swirled and gusted up to 25 mph.

“I was eating my sandwich – my bread was getting wet in the rain,” said the 18-year-old Ko, who wore four layers of clothes, hand warmers and ear muffs at times during her round.

And Pettersen’s 69?

“Pretty amazing,” Ko said.

Teresa Lu (71) of Taiwan and South Korean pair So Yeon Ryu (72) and Jin-Young Ko (70) were also on 5 under with Ko, who is trying to become the youngest winner of a major.

Top-ranked Inbee Park, seeking to complete the career sweep of the majors, shot a 73 to sit five strokes off Pettersen. Michelle Wie withdrew after aggravating a left ankle injury when she slipped to the ground as she walked off the 13th tee.

Defending champion Mo Martin shot an 80 and missed the cut, which was at 5 over, as did Morgan Pressel, Paula Creamer and U.S. Solheim Cup captain Juli Inkster.

Golf reclaimed center stage after the Donald Trump Show on Thursday. The American presidential contender, who owns Turnberry, had made the opening round of the year’s fourth major a mere sideshow by landing in his private helicopter during play and grabbing the attention of the media by continuing his election campaigning in the plush hotel overlooking the course.

The Republican was less conspicuous on Friday, although his cell phone went off as he watched Martin tee off at No. 1.

Instead, it was Pettersen who hogged the spotlight.

On a day when more than a quarter of the field shot 80 or higher, Pettersen tamed a course she described as a “beast.” She hit an 8-iron to three inches on No. 2 for the first of four birdies in her round, and emerged from holes 12-18 – playing into the wind – 1 under par.

Pettersen is oozing confidence right now. A switch of coach at the start of the year, from David Leadbetter to Butch Harmon, has led to a minor change in her swing and major change in her mentality.

“I always thought playing through the Olympics (in 2016) would be a good goal for me,” Pettersen said. “But now, feeling and seeing what I can do differently and how easy I can do stuff, it definitely has changed my perspective of my own career.

“I have a lot of goals left out there that I want to achieve.”

First-round leader Hyo-Joo Kim dropped seven shots in her last eight holes for a 78, to slip to 1 under.

McBride’s score in a round that finished in the gloom was scarcely believable, given what had happened to the rest of the field.

“It’s one of the worst rounds I’ve played, conditions-wise,” said the Swedish player. “It’s probably the best round ever in my golfing career.”

Canada’s Brooke Henderson and Alena Sharp make the cut to the weekend. Henderson signed for a round of 3-over 75 and sits 4-over for the tournament. Sharp sits at 5-over after a second-round 77.

TURNBERRY, Scotland –Donald Trump’s show-stealing arrival at the Women’s British Open on Thursday upstaged another strong start to a major by South Korea’s Hyo-Joo Kim.

Kim was midway through compiling a 7-under 65 in the first round when Trump, the American presidential candidate, landed in a private helicopter to begin a two-day visit at the tournament at his Turnberry resort in western Scotland.

The on-course action was initially a sideshow for Trump, who seized the attention by inviting the media to his hotel near the course to continue his presidential campaign. The Republican celebrity billionaire eventually watched some golf, although the leaderboard was virtually locked in by then.

The fourth-ranked Kim, who shot a first-round 61 in winning the Evian Championship on her major championship debut last year, was leading by one stroke from Lydia Ko of New Zealand and Cristie Kerr of the United States.

Ko, whose 66 was her lowest score in a major, is looking to become the youngest winner of a major. She’ll be 18 years, three months, nine days on Sunday, seven months younger than Morgan Pressel when the American won the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 2007.

Top-ranked Inbee Park began her quest to complete a sweep of the majors by shooting 69 in what she described as “perfect conditions for golf,” with three of her five birdies coming in her last five holes.

Defending champion Mo Martin shot 70, and Michelle Wie, wearing a brace on her left ankle because of a bone spur, had a 76.

Australia’s Karrie Webb, the last champion at Turnberry in 2002, shot 80 and was joint 141st in the 144-woman field.

Trump’s grand arrival at 10:30 a.m. certainly didn’t go unnoticed by the early starters on the Ailsa Course. Ko, who went out in the second group after waking up at 3:30 a.m., was on the 16th hole when the real-estate mogul’s helicopter twice circled the Ayrshire links.

“I was like, `Man, that’s a really nice helicopter,'” Ko said. “I would love one.”

The world No. 2 already was 6 under par by then, with a run of four straight birdies from No. 2 giving her momentum. On No. 5, she gripped a 5-wood from 179 yards to inside 2 feet.

Ko is trying not to think about the history she could create this weekend.

“My goal is to have one major in my career,” Ko said, “but it doesn’t need to be now.”

Ko held the clubhouse lead for barely an hour before being overtaken by Kim, who rolled in five birdies and an eagle putt from 10 inches at the par-5 14th in her first round in a British Open.

This is only her fifth major championship – and she already has a victory as well as ninth and 11th-place finishes.

“I kept playing good today,” said Kim, who donned earmuffs to combat the early morning chill. She was one of three players in the field to be bogey-free in her first round.

Canada is represented in the field this week by Alena Sharp with an opening-round of even-par and Brooke Henderson with a score of 1-over 73.

The Trump circus is scheduled to leave Turnberry on Friday, allowing the players to take center stage at the fourth major of the year.

BELMONT, Mich. – Lexi Thompson made sure she didn’t beat herself – and ended up defeating everyone else.

“I was just trying to be patient,” Thompson said after rallying from four shots back to win the Meijer LPGA Classic by a stroke Sunday. “Really, the whole day I was just trying to play my own game,”

The 20-year-old Florida player closed with a 6-under 65 at Blythefield Country Club for her fifth LPGA Tour victory. She won for the first time since the then-Kraft Nabisco Championship last year.

Thompson finished at 18-under 266 and earned $300,000.

“I actually said when I was on 10 that my goal was to get to 20-under,” Thompson said. “I didn’t get it up to that, but I was just trying to focus on my own game, focus on my pre-shot routine and having fun in between shots. I think that’s what helped me.”

Lizette Salas, four strokes ahead after the third round, tied for second with Gerina Piller. Salas finished with a 70, and Piller had a 64.

Thompson birdied Nos. 1, 4, 5 and 7 to catch Salas. Piller made five birdies on the front nine, with her birdie at No. 8 briefly tying her for the lead with Thompson and Salas.

But Thompson, ranked seventh on the tour in average driving distance and greens in regulation, kept bombing drives, spinning wedge shots and making putts. A 6-footer for birdie off a wedge to the back pin on the 400-yard, par-4 16th put her three shots in front.

Thompson created some drama when she missed the green at No. 17 and rimmed a 4-foot par putt. She caught a good bounce off a tree down the right side of No. 18 on her tee shot, ripped a shot from the rough to the middle of the green and two-putted for a winning par.

“I called my caddie over and I told him to give me something to think about to get my mind off it,” she said about the first putt on 18. “He just said something so random, like, food. And I’m like, of course. But it kept me relaxed and got me laughing and it helped me go into that putt confident.”

Thompson worked in the offseason with John Denney, a Jupiter, Florida, performance coach who specializes in the mental side of golf.

“That has helped me tremendously just to relax and have fun instead of just grinding 24-7 on the golf course,” she said.

Piller had hit all 15 greens and was 7 under for the round when she missed the green at No. 16 with tree troubles on the left side of the par 4. She made bogey for the first time. A 7-footer for birdie at No. 18 left her one shot behind.

“I knew it was going to take a great day and I gave it a run,” said Piller, whose husband, Web.com Tour player Martin Piller, was in the gallery. “I just kind of stumbled with the tee shot (at No. 16) at the end. I couldn’t afford one mistake, and I made one.”

Salas had three birdies and three bogeys through 16 holes, and stayed in it with a 20-foot birdie putt at No. 17. But she could manage only par at No. 18.

“I knew there would be some birdies out there and I knew I was capable of getting them,” she said. “I just hit some errant tee shots that caused some bogeys, but I didn’t give up. And, obviously, I can’t control what Lexi does, and she played an amazing day of golf.”

Canadian Alena Sharp finished T27 after a final 68.

BELMONT, Mich. – Lizette Salas thinks things are finally going her way and the results on the golf course are starting to match the work she has put in her game.

Without a top-10 finish this year, Salas shot a 7-under 64 on Saturday to take a four-stroke lead in the Meijer LPGA Classic, putting her in position for her second tour title.

“A lot has happened since I turned pro four years ago, and I have struggled this year but also kept working,” Salas said. “Finally, I’m playing the golf I’ve been working so hard to find. I’m really happy. Now I just want to focus on each shot and focus on keeping calm.”

The 26-year-old former University of Southern California player won the 2014 Kingsmill Championship and played on the 2013 U.S. Solheim Cup team.

She stayed calm in the third round, birdieing Nos. 14-16 and closing her bogey-free round with two pars. She had a 16-under 197 total at Blythefield Country Club.

“I think the putter really, really came in today,” she said. “I just kept it in the fairway and kept knocking them close. I don’t know what’s going on. Everything’s been going my way and I’ve been staying positive and just really focusing on my shots. I’m, really, really happy.”

Birdies on three of the first four holes and another at the par-4 ninth hole allowed Salas to pull in front of the field. After saving par with a 25-foot putt at 13, she hit a shot inside 2 feet at the par-3 14th for birdie and followed with a 6-footer at 15 and a 30-footer at 16.

Lexi Thompson and Michigan native Kris Tamulis were tied for second. Tamulis, whose family still summers in Northern Michigan, shot 67. Thompson had a 68.

Tamulis, a former Michigan Women’s Open winner and Symetra Tour graduate, said winning for the first time on the LPGA Tour in her home state would be a dream come true.

“I played all my junior golf here and my parents still live here in the summer, so it would be very special,” Tamulis said. “I can’t get ahead of myself though. I’ve had low expectations all week. I’ve played long enough to know there is a long way to go and great competition.”

Thompson, tied for the second-round lead with Salas and Alison Lee, missed a 4-foot putt and made bogey at 16, but birdied the par-4 18th with a 3-footer.

Thompson was disappointed with her putter most of the day.

“I missed a good amount of short putts,” she said. “But I’m going into tomorrow with a positive attitude. I’m going to go hit a few putts. The last stroke I made was really good, so I’m just going to go into tomorrow with a positive attitude.”

Lee had a 70 to drop into a tie for fourth at 6 under with Brittany Lincicome (65), Caroline Masson (65), So Yeon Ryu (65), Katie Burnett (66) and Gerina Piller (69).

Lee said little mistakes cost her, but that watching Salas go low inspired her.

“She was on a roll today,” Lee said. “It just shows it’s possible to shoot that low of a round, so I’ll take what I can from that and play well tomorrow.”

Top-ranked Inbee Park, a three-time winner this year, had five birdies in a six-hole stretch and finished with a 66 to move into a tie for 10th at 5 under. She said it was great to be near the lead in preparation for next week’s Women’s British Open.

“It’s a lot more fun, sure, but you want to be competing in contention and obviously want to try a few things under the pressure,” she said.