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- Akie Iwai 1 shot up on 8 challengers at Lotte Championship</p>
<p>Field Level MediaOctober 4, 2025 at 5:21 AM</p>
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<p>Aug 23, 2025; Mississauga, Ontario, CAN; Akie Iwai plays her tee shot at the third hole during third round play at the CPKC Women's Open golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images (Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images)</p>
<p>Akie Iwai produced her worst round of the tournament on Thursday but still emerged with the lead entering the final day of the Lotte Championship in Ewa Beach, Hawaii.</p>
<p>The 23-year-old Japanese player shot a 1-under-par 71 in the third round at Hoakalei Country Club, ending up at 13-under 203 for a one-stroke edge.</p>
<p>Second-round leader Youmin Hwang of South Korea shot a 75 in the third round, leaving her in an eight-way tie for second at 12 under.</p>
<p>Hwang is level with Meghan Khang (third-round 67), Brooke Matthews (69), Jessica Porvasnik (72), Japan's Minami Katsu (66), South Korea's Hyo Joo Kim (66), Taiwan's Peiyun Chien (68) and Thailand's Pornanong Phatlum (69).</p>
<p>World No. 2 Nelly Korda (69) and Japan's Nasa Hataoka (71) share 10th place at 11 under.</p>
<p>Iwai led after shooting 64 on Wednesday, and she followed that up with a 68 on Thursday. On Friday, she opened with a birdie but ended the day with three birdies and two bogeys.</p>
<p>She earned her initial LPGA Tour win in August at the Portland Classic, and she has four top-five finishes this year.</p>
<p>Looking ahead to the fourth round, Iwai said, "No change. Keep going. Yeah, I have just smiling and just fun, have fun. ... I forget what happened today and (get) ready for tomorrow."</p>
<p>Katsu birdied three of her first five holes, and she added a run of three birdies in four holes on the back nine immediately after making her lone bogey of the day at the par-3 12th hole.</p>
<p>"I feel like my (putter) today was working really well, even though it has some bad shots," said Katsu, an eight-time winner on the LPGA of Japan Tour who is seeking her first win on the U.S.-based circuit. "I think I was able to keep a good par save on with my putting. I had a pretty long birdie putt, too, so I felt like that kept my momentum going today."</p>
<p>Hyo Joo Kim put together a bogey-free round while tying Katsu and South Korea's A Lim Kim for the best score of the day.</p>
<p>Korda isn't giving up hope of earning her first win of the year. She was a seven-time winner in 2024.</p>
<p>"For me, the most important thing is giving 100 percent to every shot," she said. "That's what I'm going to do tomorrow. You never know. Golf is a crazy sport. Sports are crazy. You sometimes just need a little bit of momentum."</p>
<p>--Field Level Media</p>
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