Epson Tour graduate Maude-Aimee Leblanc made the most of Moving Day at the Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open. The 33-year-old Canadian carded a 6-under 66 on Saturday, notching seven birdies and one bogey, putting herself in a tie for third with Germany’s Leonie Harm and one shot back of co-leaders Celine Boutier and Lydia Ko. It’s the third time this season that Leblanc has been within five of the lead entering the final round and the previous two instances saw her finish in a tie for fourth at the JTBC Classic presented by Barbasol and a tie for 38th at the Palos Verdes Championship presented by Bank of America. With one round left to play, Leblanc looks to capture her first LPGA Tour title and become the fifth Rolex First-Time winner of 2022.
“The adrenaline tends to go up when I'm in situations like these, so tomorrow is going to be important to try to stay calm and focus on my breathing and try to slow everything down,” said Leblanc, who hit 11 of 14 fairways and 16 of 18 greens on day three. “It's exciting for sure. I feel pretty good with my swing right now and my putting as well. I have really good thoughts for tomorrow and just try to repeat the same thing.”
Leblanc 54-hole total of 202 is her new career-low on the LPGA Tour, besting her previous total of 206 that came at this year’s JTBC Classic. Her third-round 66 ties her lowest career 18-hole score which she last shot at the 2016 Reignwood LPGA Classic and so far this season, she has two top-10s and an additional top-25 to her credit. As she readies herself for another Sunday in contention, Leblanc plans to keep up the positive attitude that helped her get to this point and hopes that she can keep the adrenaline in check with so much to play for.
“I started working with a sports psychologist a couple months ago,” Leblanc said. “I feel like my scores haven't been as good as my game has felt the last few months and we are just trying to figure that out. That's why it was frustrating and that frustration took over a little too much so been trying to feel more relaxed out here and look at the positive side. In these moments in the past my adrenaline tends to go up a little bit and it gets harder to control distance, and then everything gets a little more quick. Tomorrow it’s going to be key to notice if that happens and then focus more on my breathing and then try to slow everything down.”
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