“Ole, ole, ole, ole,” the famous tune echoed in a sea of red under the floodlights at the National Stadium last night.

While the chant has historically been associated with the Singapore national team, especially during the heady days of the Malaysia Cup, they were last night directed at Manchester United, who beat Inter Milan 1-0 in the International Champions Cup.

United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer acknowledged as much, and said: “Today (the stadium) was Old Trafford, it felt like we were at home. The supporters have been amazing since we’ve been here.”

Indeed, Kallang proved to be the Theatre of Dreams for the over 52,000 who packed the stands, as they got to see some of the planet’s most popular football stars strut their stuff, but it was a future world-beater that made the biggest impression on them in the end.

Mason Greenwood turns 18 only in October but the youngster was the toast of United and the crowd, most of whom were United fans, after he fired a brilliant 76th-minute winner.

Solskjaer will soon find it difficult to keep the club’s latest wonderkid wrapped in cotton wool. The Norwegian admitted: “The kid’s only 17 and he’s learning every day, training with these boys and in the last few months, he has grown in confidence and in stature.

“When you have players who perform, it’s hard to keep them out, but we have to keep our feet on the ground.

“He’s only 17, he’ll have his ups and downs, but he’s enjoying his football.”

With the likes of Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford firing blanks, it was teenager Greenwood – introduced in the 62nd minute – who delivered when he deftly skipped inside Inter midfielder Joao Mario and lashed home an unstoppable shot past Samir Handanovic.

The strike sent the 52,897 crowd into a frenzy. After all, they had watched their team dominate the game almost from the start, only to be let down by a lack of precision in the final third.

Greenwood almost grabbed a second just four minutes later when he got on the end of 19-year-old Dutch winger Tahith Chong’s cross, but the woodwork came to Inter’s rescue.

Greenwood’s performance had radio personality Glenn Ong, 49, waxing lyrical, saying: “Yes, look out for Mason this season! This boy is hungry for success and Ole will certainly need someone like him especially since players like (Jesse) Lingard and Martial are firing blanks.

“Overall it was a fun match to watch and an awesome treat for United fans.”

It was perhaps a treat for Solskjaer too. While they did not have their scoring boots on, Martial, Rashford and Lingard all put in bright performances, and worked tirelessly pressing from the front.

The polarising Paul Pogba showed glimpses of his incredible skill, while young defender Axel Tuanzebe was indefatigable at the heart of defence.

The action stretched to the stands when, at half-time, a woman successfully proposed to her boyfriend.

It was new signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka, however, who received the most cheers – the £45 million (S$76.5 million) man put in a solid display defensively and was also impressive going forward.

The stadium rumbled some 10 minutes before the end, when the Kallang Wave broke out with the fans in a celebratory mood.

Amid the fever-pitch atmosphere, match referee G. Letchman remained cool despite having to handle the millionaire footballers.

The 29-year-old Certis Cisco fitness trainer said: “They may be stars, but as referees, we have to give respect to all players, no matter what level the football they play.”

The night was somewhat marred by the audible jeering from a large number of the United fans directed at Ashley Young every time he was on the ball, but Solskjaer brushed aside the issue by praising the 34-year-old as a “loyal servant” to United and a “professional” who would not be affected by the jeers.

Young, however, looked upset as he marched past the assembled media at the mixed zone and went straight onto the waiting team bus.

There was also an intriguing exchange at the final whistle between Inter Milan coach Antonio Conte and United’s injured Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku, whom the Italian has openly coveted.

While he lamented how his team had much to improve, Conte chuckled when asked about his chat with Lukaku, saying: “He’s highly regarded in my mind, and we had a few words because he recently had a child, but what was said remains between us.”

MotoGP™ Test Teams will soon be gearing up for a two-day test at the newly-constructed KymiRing in Finland, with each premier class manufacturer set to be represented as they get their first taste of the venue on the 19th and 20th August. Track time will be from 10:00 to 17:00 local time, with a final slot from 17:00 to 18:00 when some local heroes will have the chance to do some laps too.

Six riders will be on track representing the MotoGP™ manufacturers. 2010 Moto2™ World Champion Stefan Bradl is on test duty for Honda, with ever-impressive wildcard performer Michele Pirro taking the reins at Ducati. Former WorldSBK Champion Sylvain Guintoli represents Suzuki, with premier class podium finisher and recent Moto2™ runner Jonas Folger putting the laps in for Yamaha.

KTM, meanwhile, field local hero Mika Kallio as he gets a first taste of his new home track, with the high calibre line-up completed by Bradley Smith testing for Aprilia, fresh from making a little history as a podium in the opening race for the FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup means he’s now taken rostrum finishes in every single class he’s raced in from the 125 World Championship through Moto2™, MotoGP™ and now MotoE™.

During the hour break each day for the test teams, local riders will get the chance to take over and put in some laps of the track – welcoming it as an important new motorsport venue in the area. That will include FIM Enel MotoE™ World Cup history-maker Niki Tuuli, the first MotoE™ Championship leader and race winner, as he gears up to experience the stunning new circuit alongside them.

There’s now only a month to go before MotoGP™ makes its on-track debut at the stunning KymiRing, with the test set to be action packed for both test riders and local heroes. Stay up to date with everything on motogp.com as the engines fire up on the 19th and 20th August.

L-R: Sami Markkanen, Project Chief, YIT; Jukka Kalve, District Chief, YIT; Markku Lilja, SVP, Head of Paving Finland, YIT, Seppo Rossi, Safety Coordinator, KymiRing; Timo Pohjola, Circuit Director, KymiRing; Saku Nikka, Project Manager, Destia ltd

The 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion conceded he was far from his best after struggling through pain in his knee at the year’s fourth and final Major.

The Thai only averaged 35.71% in fairways hit as he could not find the right trajectory under windy conditions at the demanding par-71, 7,344 yards course.

“I’m still hitting the ball well but I just cannot apply the right pressure to the ball. I don’t have enough power to hit the ball further with the wind.

“I haven’t been hitting my driver well all day. The iron play is still excellent but not the driving,” said Kiradech, who compiled a three-day total of five-over-par 218.

While he knows he still has another 18 holes to play and improve on his position on the leaderboard, Kiradech is looking forward to recuperating and getting back to his best when the week is over.

“I’m feeling the pain in the knee and I got to go back and rest. I’m looking forward to a good break so that I can recover and play well again. When your body is not ready, it’s really difficult,” said Kiradech.

Despite an opening bogey, by the end of the day, Team All In extended that advantage to six strokes and posted a runaway win at -27 in the LPGA Tour’s first official team event.

“I couldn’t ask for a better partner at all,” said Jasmine, who earned her second career victory. “Everything just went maybe a little bit slow on the front nine, I feel a little bit of pressure. But, I mean, we started to make some birdies and then keep the game going. It’s amazing today.”

Jasmine and Clanton carded an 11-under 59 in Saturday’s final four-ball round. They closed their opening nine with five consecutive birdies and then closed with six straight to wrap up their win on Midland Country Club’s island green at No. 18.

“I pride myself on my ball striking and my ability to hit good tee balls and good iron shots, so I knew that I could contribute that way,” said Clanton, who became a Rolex First-Time Winner. “I was very comfortable in that, and I know a lot of players aren’t as comfortable in alternate shot. But to have the opportunity to come and play, for Jasmine to take me along for the ride was great, and to play like we did was awesome.”

The duo went by Team All In this week, a phrase Clanton took from her time at Auburn University and its family setting. Those words were particularly special to the team at title sponsor Dow, as Karen S. Carter, the company’s Chief Inclusion and Human Resources Officer, uses the phrase to define her vision for the company’s team attitude.

Minjee Lee and Jin Young Ko shot a spectacular 12-under 58 in their final round to finish second at -21. They combined for 16 birdies, with Lee shooting an 8-under 62 on her own ball.

“I think we totally came into this week to have fun,” said Lee. “We just wanted to have confidence and just play as well as we can and try and make as many birdies as we can. So it was definitely a fun week.”

Ariya Jutanugarn and Moriya Jutanugarn tied for third with Jenny Shin and Na Yeon Choi at -20, while Brooke Henderson and Alena Sharp rounded out the top five at -19.

CLANTON AND SUWANNAPURA – TWO TRUE #DRIVEON STORIES

Cydney Clanton competed in the 2018 LPGA Q-Series in hopes of bettering her LPGA status for 2019. After missing the top 45 there, Clanton received a late entry into the Blue Bay LPGA. She jetted from North Carolina to the People’s Republic of China in hopes of pulling into the top 100 on the final LPGA Money List. Instead, she came up a heart-breaking $8 short of a full card for the 2019 season.

Clanton has played 2019 primarily on the Symetra Tour, where she earned a win at the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout. Now an LPGA Tour winner, Clanton will jump up the LPGA Priority List from 179th to 92nd and is assured of full Tour status for the next two years. She also has the fun task of quickly booking international travel, as Clanton is now exempt into next week’s Evian Championship in France and the following week’s AIG Women’s British Open in England.

“This is 100% a God plan,” said Clanton. “I couldn’t even dream up to have won a Symetra event earlier this year and then to come out and win with Jasmine. It’s so funny, this is the tournament that I wanted to come and play in. I was like, team event, I’m in, let’s go. So I’m blessed for the opportunity, I’m blessed that Jasmine came and let me come play with her.”

Three years ago, Jasmine Suwannapura didn’t know if she would ever walk again, let alone play golf. While taking a practice swing at the 2016 Kingsmill Championship, Jasmine broke her back and was sidelined for six months. After surgery, months of rehab and totally rebuilding her swing, Jasmine saw her hard work and patience pay off when she captured her first LPGA win at the 2018 Marathon Classic. A year later, she has added a second win to that tally and joined Ariya Jutanugarn as the only Thai players with multiple Tour victories.

“I think this is like earlier than I thought I would have this,” said Jasmine. “I’ve been working hard with my game and every week is getting better with my irons and everything.”

LEE AND KO GO LOW TO CAP OFF “FUN DAY”

Minjee Lee and Jin Young Ko finished the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational just short of the top in solo second at-21 after recording a four-ball final-round 58, the lowest round of the tournament. As much as they took the tournament seriously, Lee said it was one of the most fun times they have had this year.

“I think definitely we both played better than we did the last time we played four balls. We just had a better rhythm out there. I think we just fed off each other,” said Lee. “Jin Young had so many birdies today, so I just tried to keep up pretty much. We just had a great day out there.”

The duo put together a bogey-free round, posting 12 birdies on the day. Ko said she was proud of their score and hopes to build off this momentum into the Evian Championship and AIG Women’s British Open. But Ko said she is already thinking of the next year in Midland.

“My first time hit in the 60s, in a foursome, really great playing with Minjee. We had a really great time. I want to play next year with Minjee,” said Ko.

RESHUFFLE TIME

The second and final reshuffle of the 2019 LPGA Tour season will happen on Monday following the conclusion of the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.

Category 8 on the LPGA Priority List comprises members in the Top 80 of the current year’s Money List with priority based on the order of the list. In addition, Members in Categories 13 through 19 who have earned official money will be re-seeded into Category 13 and ranked in the order of their position on the current year’s Money List through the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.

• After winning the inaugural Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, Cydney Clanton and Jasmine Suwannapura have locked in LPGA Membership for two years, with Clanton moving from No. 179 on the Priority List in Category 15 to Category 4
• With a solo third-place finish alongside partner Jenny Shin, Na Yeon Choi is poised to make a jump on the Priority List up from No. 139 in Category 13
• With a T12 finish alongside partner Ruixin Liu, Simin Feng will move up significantly on the Priority List as she was No. 449 in Category 19 entering the week
• With a T27 finish with partner Celine Herbin, Joanna Klatten will take advantage of the reshuffle as she entered the week No. 429 in Category 19
• After making the cut this week, Muni He (T27) and Sarah Burnham (37th) will also be reshuffled out of Category 14

A link to the current LPGA Priority List: http://bit.ly/Priority19

PLAYER NOTES

Rolex Rankings No. 106 Jasmine Suwannapura and No. 268 Cydney Clanton (67-64-63-59)

• This is Suwannapura’s eighth season on the LPGA Tour; she won the 2018 Marathon Classic
• This is Suwannapura’s 20th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for seventh at the Kia Classic
• Suwannapura broke her back while swinging a club during a practice round at the 2016 Kingsmill Championship and was sidelined for six months for surgery and rehab
• This is Clanton’s eighth season on the LPGA Tour; her best finish is a tie for seventh at the 2014 Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic
• This is Clanton’s fourth event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for 40th at the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic
• Clanton has also played in seven Symetra Tour events this season, taking the win at the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout
• Clanton attended Auburn University, where she was named the 2008 NGCA Freshman of the Year

CME GROUP CARES CHALLENGE – SCORE 1 FOR ST. JUDE

The CME Group Cares Challenge is a season-long charitable giving program that turns aces into donations. CME Group will donate $20,000 for each hole-in-one made on the LPGA Tour in 2019, with a minimum guaranteed donation of $500,000 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, which is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases.

There were no aces made at this week’s Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational. There have been 18 aces recorded this season and a total of $360,000 raised thus far.

LEADERS TOP 10 COMPETITION

The LEADERS Top 10 competition awards a $100,000 bonus to the LPGA player with the most top-10 finishes through the completion of the event held immediately prior to the CME Group Tour Championship. In the event of a tie in total top-10 finishes, the award will go to the player with the most official wins, followed by most second-place finishes, third-place finishes, etc., until the tie is broken.

Brooke Henderson finished in fifth and Hyo Joo Kim finished T6 at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational to move up into a tie for first with Danielle Kang and Nelly Kordawith eight top-10 finishes on the season. Jin Young Ko finished as the runner-up and Eun-Hee Ji finished T6 to move into a tie for fifth with seven top-10 finishes along withLexi Thompson.

DOW GREAT LAKES BAY INVITATIONAL FORMAT

The tournament is a 72-hole, stroke-play team event with teams comprised of two players. The first and third rounds will be played in foursomes (alternate shot) and the second and final rounds will be played in a four-ball (best-ball) format. After 36 holes, the field will be cut to the low 35 teams and ties.

In the event of a playoff, the champions will be determined by a hole-by-hole playoff in the foursomes format.

Each LPGA Member on the winning team will receive the standard two-year winner’s exemption on the LPGA Priority List. Winners will also get into the 2019 Evian Championship, 2019 AIG Women’s British Open, 2020 ANA Inspiration and 2020 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, as well as the 2020 and 2021 Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. CME points and prize money will be official for the purposes of the current-year LPGA Official Money List and Race to the CME Globe Standings. Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Rolex Player of the Year, Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year and U.S. Solheim Cup points will not be allocated, and statistics will not be calculated.

SOCIAL MEDIA – #DriveOn

Tournament: @DowGLBI; #DowGLBI, #TeamUp

LPGA: @LPGA, @LPGAMedia (Twitter), @lpga_tour (Instagram)

TOURNAMENT SCORING RECORDS

18 holes foursomes: 64 (-6), Ariya Jutanugarn and Moriya Jutanugarn, third round, 2019

18 holes four-ball: 58 (-12), Minjee Lee and Jin Young Ko, fourth round, 2019

36 holes: 130 (-10), Stephanie Meadow and Giulia Molinaro, 2019; Celine Boutier and Karine Icher, 2019; Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel, 2019

54 holes: 194 (-16), Jasmine Suwannapura and Cydney Clanton, 2019

72 holes: 253 (-27), Jasmine Suwannapura and Cydney Clanton, 2019

The 23-year-old outshone all competition last year to become the first player to win every major award in an LPGA Tour season: Player of the Year, 2018 No 1, Race to CME Globe, Annika Major Award, LPGA Vare Trophy, Top 10 Leaders and No 1 on the Money List.

Ariya couldn’t be there in person to receive the honour as she was still playing in the Dow Great Lake Invitational tournament in the US.

In the amateur athlete awards, cyclist Jai Angsuthasawit was named best male, while taekwondo exponent Panipak Wongwattanakit topped the female athletes.

Thai-Australian Jai rose to fame when he beat the odds to win the men’s cycling keirin for a long-awaited gold medal for Thailand in the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia.

Panipak, meanwhile, swept gold medals in the 49k category at several international tournaments, including the 2018 Asian Games, 2019 World Championships and the recently concluded World University Games in Italy. The 21-year-old from Surat Thani also won this award last year.

Award winners:

Best professional athlete: Arya Jutanugarn (golf)

Best amateur male athlete: Jai Angsuthasawit (cycling)

Best amateur female athlete: Panipak Wongwattanakit (taekwondo)

Best junior female athlete: Atthaya Thitikul (golf)

Best junior male athlete: Kunlavut Vitidsarn (badminton)

Best coach: Choi Young Seok (taekwondo)

Best male para athlete: Warawut Saengampa (boccia)

Best female para athlete: Kwansuda Puangkijja (taekwondo)

Best Sports Association: Taekwondo Association of Thailand

Best Sports Team: 2018 Asian Games women’s volleyball team

Honourary Award: Vichai Srivaddhanaprapha (former chairman of Leicester City Football Club)

Powered by eight birdies and one lone bogey, Jasmine and Clanton survived a day that saw the heat index soar in the triple digits and put themselves in prime position to become the first official team winners in LPGA Tour history.

“Today I think what we did was quite impressive just with our ball striking in general,” said Clanton, a graduate of Auburn University. “Jasmine’s putting’s on point. I think you’ve just got to look at it as it’s just another opportunity to play and the more that you can think of the fact that it’s just another day on the golf course, we’re going to go out and try to do what we’ve been doing, the better it’s going to be.”

With the competition returning to the foursomes format for Saturday’s final round, the duo knows that no lead is safe, even their five-stroke advantage.

“I can see that we play (foursomes) pretty good and I feel like tomorrow’s going to be pretty fun day to see like how many opportunities we are going to get and how many birdies we are going to make,” said Jasmine, who won the 2018 Marathon Classic for her first LPGA Tour win. “We are just going to focus on that and play our own game and just try to find birdies tomorrow.”

Four teams are tied for second at -11 – Ariya Jutanugarn and Moriya Jutanugarn, Ruixin Liu and Simin Feng, Jenny Shin and Na Yeon Choi, and Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel.

WEATHER ADJUSTS SATURDAY SCHEDULE

Due to a storm system forecasted to affect the Great Lakes Bay region on Saturday afternoon, tee times for the final round of the 2019 Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational will be adjusted to 7 a.m. to 8:57 a.m., with teams teeing off the first and 10th tees. Gates will open to the public at 7 a.m. with an estimated finish time of 2:15 p.m., depending on weather conditions.

JUTANUGARN SISTERS GO LOW

The sister duo of Ariya Jutanugarn and Moriya Jutanugarn started the day five strokes off the lead in a tie for 23rd. After a bogey-free 64 on Saturday, the Jutanugarns are still five strokes off the lead, but this time in a tie for second with five other teams. Younger sister Ariya particularly enjoyed this second day of foursomes play after having the opportunity settle into the format in Wednesday’s first round.

“I felt like in the first round, I don’t want to miss any shot because I don’t want my sister to have like tough shot and I was kind of worried and scared,” said Ariya Jutanugarn. “Today we already make the cut and nothing to lose, so we keep playing golf.”

Moriya Jutanugarn agreed with her sister, saying, “It’s so hard to find momentum of two players, like two together.  And, you know, it’s just like today is better because you have play, you know, foursome in the first round already and you kind of feel like more relaxed.”

The Korda sisters have combined for seven LPGA Tour victories (five for Jessica and two for Nelly), while the Jutanugarns have 11 wins between them (10 for Ariya and one for Moriya). Only two other sets of sisters have both won on the LPGA Tour – Annika Sorenstam (72 wins) and Charlotta Sorenstam (one win), and Jessica Korda (five wins) and Nelly Korda (two wins) – while 10 total sets of sisters have played on Tour.

LIU AND FENG MAKING THE MOST OF DOW GLBI

Riuxin Liu and Simin Feng, aka Team Dumpling, stormed out of the gate yesterday at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, posting an 8-under four-ball round to sit comfortably at T10 going into the third day. After switching back to foursomes, the duo stayed consistent and finished today tied for second at -11.

“I think it’s just after the best ball you kind of has like certain expectations since it’s like 8-under round for us yesterday and today we know a different perspective. So you just try to be patient when you’re not making birdies, so I think that helps us a lot,” said Liu.

Yesterday, the partners said their strategy for today was to go with the flow. “We said we’re not going to expect a lot out of this round,” said Feng. “But I think as much as we were expecting, we got a lot more out of that than what we were expecting.”

The friends are both searching for their first win on the LPGA Tour. Feng’s career-best finish is T6 from the 2016 COATES Golf Championship. Liu, a 2019 rookie, remembers the feeling of being in the winner’s circle from her recent Symetra Tour experience. She finished first in the Volvik Race to the Card in 2018 with three wins, and became the sixth person in Symetra Tour history to surpass $100,000 in single-season earnings ($124,839). She said being close to the top is a definite confidence boost for Team Dumpling.

“It will be a really huge honor to be in contention, so I will just try to be patient and be myself and play my game and don’t think about anything else,” said Liu.

SHIN AND CHOI ARE IN SYNC HEADING INTO FINAL ROUND

On Friday at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, “Team Insynch” of Na Yeon Choi and Jenny Shin improved in the foursomes format, posting a 3-under round with just one bogey. Choi was pleased they were able to make a move up the leaderboard at Midland Country Club as they enter the final round tied for second.

“I think even on Wednesday we did a great job,” said Choi, a major champion at the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open. “The only one thing that we made one or two bogeys, I think two bogeys on Wednesday from three-putts, both three-putts. So that wasn’t like I felt something I left on the course after the first round. But today even we had one bogey, but we made a lot of save, like par save. So I think we both did a really good job.”

The pair from the Republic of Korea will enter the final four-ball round on Saturday five shots back of leaders Jasmine Suwannapura and Cydney Clanton. Shin is looking for her second career LPGA victory on Saturday and first since 2016, while Choi is looking for her 10th career LPGA win and first since 2015.

While Shin would love to hoist the trophy along with her good friend and partner, she’s focused on a good finish in the four-ball format where they fired a 64 during the second round four-ball.

“We would really, really have to step up our game tomorrow, but if we finish in the top-5, I think we’ll be still happy with it because that’s a regular top-10 in a regular tournament and that’s a $2 million purse,” Shin said. “So, you know, my objective right now is to get in the Scottish Open and Asia and everything in the near future. You know, that’s our goal. We’re just going to do everything we possibly can to go for the win tomorrow.”

WITH A WIN…

Na Yeon Choi, Cydney Clanton, Simin Feng or Ruixin Liu would earn a spot in the Evian Championship and the AIG Women’s British Open

Paula Creamer would earn a spot in the AIG Women’s British Open, a tournament she has not missed since she became an LPGA Member in 2005

Clanton, Liu or Feng would become the fifth Rolex First-Time Winner of the 2019 season

Jasmine Suwannapura or Moriya Jutanugarn would join Ariya Jutanugarn as the only Thai players with more than one LPGA Tour victory

Creamer would earn her first LPGA win since the 2014 HSBC Women’s World Championship, while Morgan Pressel would earn her first win since the 2008 Kapalua LPGA Classic

RESHUFFLE TIME

The second and final reshuffle of the 2019 LPGA Tour season will happen after the conclusion of this week’s Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.

Category 8 on the LPGA Priority List comprises members in the Top 80 of the current year’s Money List with priority based on the order of the list. In addition, Members in Categories 13 through 19 who have earned official money will be re-seeded into Category 13 and ranked in the order of their position on the current year’s Money List through the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.

• Simin Feng is currently No. 449 on the Priority List in Category 19 and is poised to make the biggest leap on the Priority List as she and partner Ruixin Liu are T2 through 54 holes at -11
• Joanna Klatten is currently No. 429 on the Priority List in Category 19 and is T28 at -4 with partner Celine Herbin following Saturday’s round
• Cydney Clanton is currently No. 179 on the Priority List in Category 15, and through 54 holes she and partner Jasmine Suwannapura are alone atop the leaderboard at -16
• Karine Icher is currently No. 159 on the Priority List in Category 13, and through 54 holes she and partner Celine Boutier are T6 at -10

A link to the current LPGA Priority List: http://bit.ly/Priority19

PLAYER NOTES

Rolex Rankings No. 106 Jasmine Suwannapura and No. 268 Cydney Clanton (67-64-63)

• This is Suwannapura’s eighth season on the LPGA Tour; she won the 2018 Marathon Classic
• This is Suwannapura’s 20th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for seventh at the Kia Classic
• Suwannapura broke her back while swinging a club during a practice round at the 2016 Kingsmill Championship and was sidelined for six months for surgery and rehab
• This is Clanton’s eighth season on the LPGA Tour; her best finish is a tie for seventh at the 2014 Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic
• This is Clanton’s fourth event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for 40th at the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic
• Clanton has also played in seven Symetra Tour events this season, taking the win at the Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout
• Clanton attended Auburn University, where she was named the 2008 NGCA Freshman of the Year

Rolex Rankings No. 6 Ariya Jutanugarn and No. 26 Moriya Jutanugarn (70-65-64)

• This is Ariya Jutanugarn’s fifth season on the LPGA Tour; she has 10 career victories, most recently at the 2018 Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open
• This is Ariya Jutanugarn’s 17th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is second at her last event, the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic
• Ariya Jutanguarn represented Thailand at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil; she was the first-round leader but withdrew during the third round with a knee injury
• This is Moriya Jutanugarn’s seventh season on the LPGA Tour; she won the 2018 HUGEL-JTBC LA Open
• This is Moriya Jutanugarn’s 17th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for fourth at the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions

Rolex Rankings No. 282 Ruixin Liu and No. 660 Simin Feng (70-62-67)

• This is Liu’s rookie season on the LPGA Tour; this is her 16th career start, with a best finish of T26 as a non-Member at the 2018 Buick LPGA Shanghai
• This is Liu’s 14th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for 11th at last week’s Marathon Classic, one of two cuts she has made this year
• Liu won the Symetra Tour’s 2018 Volvik Race for the Card to earn her 2019 LPGA Tour Membership; she was a three-time winner in 2018 and became the sixth player in Symetra Tour history to surpass $100,000 in single-season earnings with $124,839
• This is Feng’s fifth season on the LPGA Tour; her best finish is a tie for sixth at the 2016 COATES Golf Championship
• This is Feng’s fifth event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; this is her second made-cut of the year, joining last week’s Marathon Classic, where she tied for 71st
• Feng spent one year at Vanderbilt University, where she was named SEC Freshman of the Year

Rolex Rankings No. 46 Jenny Shin and No. 396 Na Yeon Choi (68-64-67)

• This is Shin’s ninth season on the LPGA Tour; she won the 2016 Volunteers of America Texas Shootout
• This is Shin’s 15th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is solo fourth at the Honda LPGA Thailand
• This is Choi’s 12th season on the LPGA Tour; she has nine wins, most recently at the 2015 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, and took a major win at the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open
• This is Choi’s 14th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for 27th at the Bank of Hope Founders Cup
• Choi missed most of the 2018 LPGA season due to injury

Rolex Rankings No. 157 Paula Creamer and No. 88 Morgan Pressel (66-64-69)

• This is Creamer’s 15th season on the LPGA Tour; she has 10 career victories, most recently at the 2014 HSBC Women’s World Championship
• This is Creamer’s 13th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for eighth at the ShopRite LPGA Classic for Acer
• This is Pressel’s 14th season on the LPGA Tour; she has two wins, most recently at the 2008 Kapalua LPGA Classic
• This is Pressel’s 15th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for third at the HUGEL-AIR PREMIA LA Open and she tied for sixth at the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give
• Creamer and Pressel have played in a combined 12 Solheim Cups; they have been paired together five times with a 2-2-1 record

DOW GREAT LAKES BAY INVITATIONAL FORMAT

The tournament is a 72-hole, stroke-play team event with teams comprised of two players. The first and third rounds will be played in foursomes (alternate shot) and the second and final rounds will be played in a four-ball (best-ball) format. After 36 holes, the field will be cut to the low 35 teams and ties.

In the event of a playoff, the champions will be determined by a hole-by-hole playoff in the foursomes format.

Each LPGA Member on the winning team will receive the standard two-year winner’s exemption on the LPGA Priority List. Winners will also get into the 2019 Evian Championship, 2019 AIG Women’s British Open, 2020 ANA Inspiration and 2020 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, as well as the 2020 and 2021 Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. CME points and prize money will be official for the purposes of the current-year LPGA Official Money List and Race to the CME Globe Standings. Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Rolex Player of the Year, Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year and U.S. Solheim Cup points will not be allocated, and statistics will not be calculated.

The 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion felt let down by several misjudged shots he made especially on the par-fives and signed for a 73. He took a share of 32nd place with South Korea’s Sanghyun Park, India’s Shubhankar Sharma and Japan’s Asaji Yosuke in the weekend rounds of the year’s fourth and final Major.

“I hit the ball well today but I made some poor decisions on the golf course today. I’ve been hitting my ball onto the middle of the fairways on the par-fives. They were all reachable but I still ended up with a two-over score which is disappointing,” said Kiradech who was not able to replicate his opening round efforts where he carded a 68.

“I will still try to go out there and play my best golf. There are still 36 more holes for me to grind it out and try to move back inside the top-50 in the world,” added the Thai No 1.

 Three other Thais did not make it to the weekend stage. Thai No 2 Jazz Janewattananond, with a 7, hit five over-par-147, a stroke better than The Open debutant Gunn Charoenchaikul (76). Prom Meesawat, with a disappointing 81 on Friday, ended on 12 over-par-154.

Justin Harding

Meawnhile South Africa’s Justin Harding staged a remarkable comeback by firing a second round six-under-par 65 to head into the weekend in tied-fifth place at .

After enduring a topsy-turvy opening round where he signed for a 71, the two-time Asian Tour winner hauled himself back into contention by charging ahead with a birdie-four on the second hole.

He dropped a shot on the fourth hole but soared back with an eagle-three on the par-five seven. After turning in 34, Harding then made three birdies in four holes before another bogey on 14 stopped him in his tracks momentarily.

The South African responded well with a pair of birdies on 15 and 16 before making pars on 17 and 18 to cap a memorable day at Royal Portrush where he is just two shots back of second round leader, JB Holmes of the United States.

“It was a roller-coaster yesterday and I prefer not to have them. You really got to execute your plans well here. If not you’ll get into a lot of trouble. It starts immediately off the tee and you cannot be in the rough and certainly not in the bunkers.

“I made some bad swings yesterday which was evident on my score card as I made a bunch of bogeys. But today I kept them off the card which was good. I managed to stay up straight in the bunker and was able to get in and out there without any problems today,” said the world number 50, who is also the highest ranked Asian Tour member on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).

Playing at The Open for the first time since his debut in 2013 where he missed the cut, Harding returns as a different player having won five events around the world since the start of the 2018 season, including his wins in Indonesia and Thailand on the Asian Tour and the 2019 Qatar Masters on the European Tour

“This morning was one of those days where I knew I had to go out and shoot a good number. Fortunately, the conditions were kind to us as the winds didn’t really get up that much.

“It was one of those days where you got to try to put yourself in a good position come the weekend and I’ve done that,” said Harding.

Sharma, the reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit champion signed for a 72 for a tied-48th place while Yosuke’s 143 total was just enough for him to make it through right on the bubble.

The world No 8 relied on his rock-solid defence to stem the run of China’s Huang Yu Xiang, the conqueror of top seed and world champion Kento Momota, 21-10 21-17 for his best run in a BWF World Tour 1000 tournament.

“I was so excited,” said Kantaphon, who is hunting his first World Tour title. “It shows that all the hard work is starting to pay off,” added the Thai No 1, who produced superb form to upset Kanta Tsuneyama and Anthony Ginting of Japan in the first two rounds.

Kantaphon said his Indonesia coach Agus Dwi Santosa has emphasised defensive skills, which yielded fruit in this tournament.

“As my attacking game is already okay, my coach has focused on my defensive game recently. I’ve been working really hard to improve this aspect,” said the Thai No 1 who lined up a semi-final clash with fourth-seeded Chou Tien Chen of Taiwan. The world No 3 ousted Asian Games gold medalist Jonathan Christie 16-21 21-18 21-14.

“I’ve never beaten Chou before,” said Kantaphon who has lost all three of his matches to the Taiwanese. “I have nothing to lose. I will go out there and figure out a way to beat him.”

While Kantaphon moved on, former champion Ratchanok was ousted by world No 1 and defending champion Tai Tzu Ying 21-18 16-21 21-12.

The 64-year-old former Japan manager publicly confirmed his commitment to Thailand, finally putting to bed online reports that he would turn down the offer.

“I went to talk to Thai FA president Somyot Poompanmoung in Thailand and realised that he has a strong determination to elevate the standard of Thai football,” Nishino told media gathered at Tokyo’s New Otani hotel.

“After I returned to Japan and considering things, I decided to take the job to coach the national team and the U23 team,” added the former coach of J-League champions Kashiwa Reysol.

Nishino faces a daunting first test as Thailand coach, as he is expected to plot a win over arch-rivals Vietnam in the home leg of the World Cup Asian Qualifiers on September 5. Thailand have been drawn in a tough group alongside the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia and Indonesia.

“In terms of football in Asia, there is a big wall [to climb] as there are some tough competitions where you can fail in the qualifying rounds. I may have coached J League teams and the Japan national team before, but to become head coach for a foreign team is not easy. Thailand have to play qualifying rounds for some tough tournaments,” Said the Japanese manager.

Nishino, who coached Japan to the 2018 World Cup round of 16, says he is determined to help Thailand reach the finals of the world’s biggest sporting event.

“To elevate a team to a higher level is what makes me happy as a coach. … I intend and will make all efforts to get Thailand to the World Cup,” he added.

Nishino said that he already watched Thai players but still had no idea how they would perform in the game against Vietnam. But he warned that it was not easy to get a group of players to adjust to each other’s style and achieve good results.

“I will try to strengthen the Thailand team and lift them to another level so they can compete with teams like Japan,” he said.

The deal between Nishino and the Thai FA is rumoured to be worth around Bt30 million per year, which would be the most lucrative coaching contract in Thai football history.

A trio of teams sit atop the leaderboard at -10 following Thursday’s four-ball second round at the inaugural Dow Great Lake Bay Invitational. Stephanie Meadow and Giulia Molinaro returned a bogey-free 10-under 61 on Thursday, including five consecutive birdies at holes 5-9. Celine Boutier and Karine Icher shot a bogey-free 62, whileMorgan Pressel and Paula Creamer, who were in second following the first round, carded six birdies on their opening nine and played even-par golf for the rest of their round en route to a 64.

“Obviously best ball, you can give yourself as many birdie opportunities with your partner, and Morgan played awesome on the back nine, which was our front nine,” said Creamer, who is looking for her first win since 2014. “I couldn’t really get anything going on this side. But, you know, we’ve got two more days left so we’re not in bad position by any means. It wasn’t our A game today, but still very pleased with where we’re sitting.”

Six teams are tied for fourth at -9, including first-round leaders Brooke Henderson and Alena Sharp and Michigan native Kris Tamulis and Kim Kaufman. FrenchwomenCeline Herbin and Joanna Klatten shot a bogey-free 10-under 60 on Thursday, highlighted by a hole-out eagle-3 for Herbin at No. 12, and are tied for 14th.

Notables to miss the cut include Suzann Pettersen and Catriona Matthew (-1), Maria Fassi and Jennifer Kupcho (-1) and Stacy Lewis and Gerina Piller (-1).

FROM ROYAL PORTRUSH AND A KENYAN RESORT TO THE GREAT LAKES BAY REGION

With a lights-out 9-under 61 on Thursday, Stephanie Meadow and Giulia Molinaro vaulted up the leaderboard. Team M&M started the day in a tie for 12th after shooting 69 in Wednesday’s four-ball session. Meadow carded seven birdies and one bogey on Thursday to Molinaro’s four birdies, jumping the duo into a tie for the lead.

Molinaro gave the credit to Meadow’s hot putter, especially early in their round. “When one person’s not playing well, the other person’s going to pick up the slack,” said Molinaro, a born Italian who spent most of her life living on a Kenyan luxury resort before coming the United States at age 16.

This could line up to be an extra special week for Meadow, a native of Northern Ireland and a member of Royal Portrush Golf Club, the host of this week’s British Open. If she can’t be at her home course this week, at least she is tasting success in Michigan.

“It’s amazing to have the Open at Royal Portrush this year. It’s my home golf course and I wasn’t sure if we’d ever get it so it’s going to be spectacular to watch,” said Meadow, a graduate of the University of Alabama who now lives in Phoenix. “It’s a fantastic golf course. It’s got some amazing views. If the wind blows it’s going to play really tough.”

Both players are in search of their first career victories. Meadow would become the LPGA Tour’s first winner from Northern Ireland, while Molinaro would join Silvia Cavalleri (2007 Corona Championship) as the only Tour winners from Italy.

CREAMER AND PRESSEL PARTNERSHIP PAYS OFF IN ROUND TWO

Team Pink put on a clinic on their front nine during the second round of the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational. Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel birdied six holes, finishing in a tie for first at -10. Nine straight pars on their back nine tested the patience of the dynamic duo, but Pressel said they still stuck to their strategy for the day.

“Our game plan for the whole day was two balls in play,” said Pressel. “Maybe a couple of holes we really did that well and that allows you to swing a little bit more freely and be more aggressive in best ball. I think we went at all the pins that we could, for sure.”

The friends said that this tournament feels like a preview for the Solheim Cup. Pressel, a veteran of five USA Teams, currently sits 27th on the U.S. Solheim Cup Team Rankings, with seven-time team member Creamer at 33rd. The U.S. Team will not be finalized until after the CP Women’s Open and while Solheim Cup points will not be awarded following this team event, Creamer said playing well the rest of the week is another opportunity to show Team Captain Juli Inkster they belong in Scotland come September.

“We would be lying if we weren’t thinking about that. But we’re a team, we’re kind of a little package deal with that.  When we’re together, we always play really solid. That’s why we’ve always had a very good record with that,” said Creamer. “You know what happens, happens. Tomorrow’s not going to dictate that.  We still have some events even after this one to try and get up there. But we’re playing to win this week and whatever happens, happens.”

TEAM BOUCHER SURGES TO TOP

Boucher is the French word for Butcher, and playing as Team Boucher, the French team of Celine Boutier and Karine Icher cut right to the top of the leaderboard on Thursday.

After a 2-under 68 in Wednesday’s opening foursomes round, the duo combined for eight birdies in Thursday’s four-ball round at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational to enter the third round tied for the lead at -10.

Despite the wind and tricky hole locations on Thursday, Icher was confident in their strategy partly because her partner rarely makes mistakes.

“The plan is to put always a ball in play, and then when you know you have a ball on the green, I mean the other one can go for it,” said Icher of their strategy for four-ball. “That’s the goal of four-ball. And my partner is so like very accurate, it’s so nice to rely on her because, you know, she’s going to be in the middle. So then you can take a little bit more risk. It worked pretty good. We stayed patient pretty much the whole course. It’s not an easy course. It was very windy today and tough pin positions.”

Each time one of them made a bogey, the other was in for at least par, and they finished with three straight birdies, including a long putt on 18 from Icher.

“I think overall it was a pretty good day,” said Boutier. “I feel like our games complement each other really well. When I was struggling a bit, she was there to save the team, and the opposite, so it was pretty good.”

PLAYER NOTES

Rolex Rankings No. 298 Stephanie Meadow and No. 256 Giulia Molinaro (69-61)

• This is Meadow’s fourth season on the LPGA Tour; her best finish is solo third at the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open, in her professional debut and as a non-Member
• Meadow was a LPGA Tour rookie in 2015; after a stress fracture in her back derailed her career in mid-2017, she returned to the Symetra Tour for 2018, where she had one victory and regained her LPGA Tour card via the Volvik Race for the Card
• This is Meadow’s 16th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for 11th at last week’s Marathon Classic presented by Dana
• Meadow won the LPGA Tour’s 2015 Heather Farr Perseverance Award in 2015; her father Robert was diagnosed with Stage IV pancreatic cancer at the beginning of the season and Meadow left the Tour for three months to help care for him before his death in May 2015
• Meadow was a four-year First Team All-American for the University of Alabama from 2010-14
• Meadow grew up in Jordanstown, Northern Ireland, where she is a member of Royal Portrush Golf Club, this week’s British Open host course; she later attended the International Junior Golf Academy in Hilton Head Island, S.C., before attending college at Alabama
• Meadow represented Ireland at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil, where she tied for 31st
• This is Molinaro’s fifth season on the LPGA Tour; her best finish is a tie for eighth at the 2016 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship
• This is Molinaro’s ninth event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; her best finish is a tie for 15th at the Thornberry Creek LPGA Classic
• Molinaro was born in Italy and raised in Kenya before attending Arizona State University; she now makes her home in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Rolex Rankings No. 72 Celine Boutier and No. 315 Karine Icher (68-62)

• This is Boutier’s third season on the LPGA Tour; she won the 2019 ISPS Handa Vic Open and three other top-10 finishes
• This is Boutier’s 16th event of the 2019 LPGA Tour season; she won the ISPS Handa Vic Open and has two other top-10 finishes
• Boutier has two wins on the Symetra Tour and two wins on the Ladies European Tour