Cassie Porter is standing on the edge of her first-ever LPGA Tour title. The Australian golfer will start Sunday’s final round of the Meijer LPGA Classic at Blythefield Country Club in solo third place at 12 under par. She's just two strokes behind leader Jing Yan and one shot behind England’s Lottie Woad.

And now, as the first LPGA Tour title firmly within reach, Porter has embraced the pressure. She noted that her nerves are a sign of her excitement, and she's solely relying on her processes.

"A wise friend of mine said to me that nerves and excitement are the exact same feeling," Porter said.

She opened the week with a 67 and followed it with a steady 68 and 69 rounds.

"And, yeah, I'm not going to lie, there is a lot of that," she added. "But, I mean, what a privilege, you know. So I'm really excited to go out there tomorrow and just see what happens. But sticking to the same game plan, but yeah, how cool!"

This is not the first time the 23-year-old has been near the top of the leaderboard this year.

Porter finished in a tie for second place at the Women’s Australian Open on the Ladies European Tour. She also finished in a tie for fifth place at the Fortinet Founders Cup and tied for ninth at the ShopRite LPGA Classic on the LPGA.

"I’ve got nothing to defend," she said on Saturday. "I don’t have a position to uphold. It’s just I’m going to play the best golf I can and see where that lands me on Sunday afternoon."

The Saturday round that kept her in contention

Porter started the third round one shot behind Jing Yan. She wasted no time showing why she belongs in the final group. She birdied the very first hole in the third round on Saturday, quickly moving to 10 under.

For a moment, she was tied for the lead. However, as the afternoon went on, the greens began to firm up.

"The first nine was very similar to the last few days," Porter said. "But on the back nine, the greens started to firm up. The pace of my putting kind of showed that."

In the front nine, Porter birdied four times before her first bogey of the day on the par-4 ninth hole. But in the back nine, she bogeyed two more times and finished with a 3-under 69.

Porter wasn't the only Australian playing well this week. Karis Davidson also had a great day, shooting a 67 to tie for tenth. The tournament is heading for its finale, scheduled for Sunday, June 21.

So, can Cassie Porter finally lift that trophy on Sunday? What do you think? Let us know in comments.

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Written by

Md Saife Fida

Edited by

Ankita Yadav