With 18 holes left to play at the Casino Del Sol Golf Classic, the tournament finally sees a solo leader. Gigi Stoll hung on throughout the notoriously hard back nine of Sewailo Golf Club to take the lead at 10-under after 54 holes. The former University of Arizona wildcat signed for a third-round 70, carding five birdies and three bogeys.
“I started off pretty slow. I grinded out a couple of pars, and then I got into the groove of things. I made a couple of birdies on the front nine, chipped in on nine, and that really helped the momentum of the round,” said Stoll. “It wasn’t the best finish, but I’m excited about how I finished and how I dealt with today.”
Stoll’s game plan for Sunday’s final round in Tucson is to start strong and bring it home with a good score on the back nine. The win would mark the Oregon native’s first on the Epson Tour since becoming a rookie in 2019.
“Starting off strong out here is really important,” said Stoll. “The front nine has a lot of birdies and the back nine you just want to come in with a good score, and I think I can do that tomorrow and have a good day.”
Second-round co-leader, Haley Moore and 2022 Epson Tour champion, Daniela Iacobelli share second place at 9-under. The duo both signed for under-par rounds, with Iacobelli putting herself in contention after signing for a third-round 68. The Florida native says her putter is hot and is what pushed her into the final group for the final round. Although she felt like she couldn’t miss on the front nine after carding five of her six birdies before making the turn, Iacobelli is most concerned about beating the course, not her peers.
“I’m just worried about beating this golf course,” said Iacobelli. “I don’t even know what anyone else is doing. I feel like it’s just trying to survive the golf course, so I’m just going to do that again tomorrow and whatever will be will be.”
Moore signed for a third-round 71 carding five birdies on both the front nine and the day. Despite ending her round with a bogey and double bogey, the University of Arizona alumna feels confident and looking forward to Sunday.
“I’m going to stay patient and stick with the game plan that I’ve always had playing here,” said Moore. “I know that birdies will come, bogeys will come, I just have to stay patient. You never know what shot could happen and possibly change and be good.”
Rounding out the top five is Maria Torres, Pinyada Kuvanun and Natasha Andrea Oon. Torres, who won on the Epson Tour in 2022, also carded a 4-under third round and heads into the final round in solo fourth at 8-under. Kuvanun and Oon share fifth place at 7-under, just three shots behind Stoll. A total of 39 players will start the final round at even par or better.
QUICK QUOTES
Pinyada Kuvanun (-7, T5) on a strong third-round:
“I feel pretty good about my game today. I was just trying to keep it simple. I’m just going to try and keep it on the green and if I can make the putt then it’ll be a good birdie. But if it doesn’t get into the hole, then I’ll just keep it simple.”
Heather Lin (-6, T7) on a bogey-free third round and holing out for eagle:
“I’m pretty happy about how I’ve played the entire week, but especially yesterday and today. I was hitting a lot of greens and had a lot of birdie chances, but yesterday I left a ton out there. My caddie and I were discussing that we can really take advantage of some holes and I couldn’t make any putts. I said, ‘I might as well hit it in,’ and then I holed out, so it felt great. Overall, it was just pretty steady.”
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