BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) Ariya Jutanugarn used two quick birdies at the U.S. Women’s Open to put the pressure on leader Sarah Jane Smith.

With the momentum secured, the 22-year-old from Thailand was far from finished.

Jutanugarn shot a 5-under 67 in the third round Saturday, turning a three-shot deficit into a four-shot lead and creating an excellent opportunity to win her second major championship. Even Smith, who shot a 74 to fall back to second place, was impressed by Jutanugarn’s relentless surge.

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”She’s a spectacular player, obviously,” Smith said. ”Her length is just one part of her game. She hits it a long way, but her short game is impeccable. She rolls the ball beautifully.

”She’s just the whole package.”

Jutanugarn certainly looked like it on Saturday, combining long drives with a solid short game and putting. She made six birdies and just one bogey, rarely encountering serious trouble. When asked if her game had any current weaknesses, she imme..

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) Sarah Jane Smith has a three-shot lead entering the third round of the U.S. Women’s Open.

The Australian shot a 5-under 67 Friday, finishing her second round before more thunderstorms soaked an already wet Shoal Creek course. Half the field completed the second round Saturday morning.

Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn is second after a 70. South Korean-born Su-Hyun Oh, who moved to Australia at 8, shot a 68 and is third. She’s four shots behind Smith, who is at 10-under 134 for the tournament.

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Michelle Wie is among eight players tied for fourth, seven shots off the lead. Wie had a 72 in the second round after a 69 Thursday. The third round begins with groups of three, starting on the first and 10th tees.

As awful as the internet is 24/7/365, its great moments certainly outweigh the bad. The aftermath of the J.R. Smith saga on Twitter alone provided enough content to LOL, LMAO and ROFL over for a lifetime. But it's this video, which came a full 24 hours after J.R.'s nightmare, that's the crown jewel.
RELATED: J.R. Smith and the 10 worst mental errors in the biggest moments in sports history
We present to you the #JRSmithChallenge from @SamuelGrubbs1, who deserves at an Oscar nomination for this masterpiece:
https://twitter.com/SamuelGrubbs1/status/1002724962015371264
Outstanding, and incredibly dangerous, work. Where is this occurring where they are just running on a highway and through traffic? Shades of Forrest Gump as one Twitter user beat us to pointing out:
https://twitter.com/18Toroj/status/1002756344502476800
Poor J.R. Hopefully he lays off the Hen before Game 2.

BRESCIA, Italy (AP) Lee Slattery of England shot a 9-under 62 Saturday to take a one-stroke lead entering the final round of the Italian Open.

Seeking his first victory since the 2015 Russian Open, Slattery produced eight birdies, an eagle and a single bogey to move just ahead of home favorite Francesco Molinari and Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark.

Molinari is coming off the biggest win of his career at the BMW PGA Championship – where Slattery missed the cut.

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”Coming off the back of 77 and 79 at Wentworth last week I never really expected this,” Slattery said. ”But it proves once again to all golfers out there that you’re never that far away.”

Molinari extended his run of holes without a bogey to 85 before dropping a shot on the sixth.

Danny Willett, the 2016 Masters champion, and former No. 1 Martin Kaymer, were two strokes off the lead at Gardagolf Country Club.

After finishing her round at Shoal Creek, Brittany Lincicome got a little history lesson.

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

Not so long ago, the ritzy club hosting this week’s U.S. Women’s Open saw nothing wrong with allowing only white, gentile men to join its membership rolls. Not so long ago, this lush spot nestled among the rolling hills southeast of Birmingham, Alabama, was a lightning rod in the struggle for civil rights in sports.

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”Oh my God, I can’t believe that was still in 1990,” Lincicome said. ”I mean, it doesn’t feel like it was that long ago for that to still be happening.”

Indeed, it’s hard to fathom that less than three decades is all one needs to return to a time when it was still acceptable to host a major golf tournament while clinging to exclusionary membership policies based on race, sex or religion.

But the 1990 PGA Championship at Shoal Creek helped to change all that, forcing the PGA Tour, PGA of America and other gover..

DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) Tiger worked his way into contention at the Memorial, despite his putter letting him down.

He energized the crowd, too, with a brilliant eagle on the par-5 11th at Muirfield Village, a place where he’s won five times.

Woods’ wedge shot from 97 yards out hit past the hole before spinning backward and rolling in. He raised his arms in triumph, pitched his club to the caddy and acknowledged the roar from the gallery.

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He carded a 67 for the day, but it should have been better.

”I missed a lot of short putts, which is, you know, something I don’t normally do, which is just frustrating,” he said.

Woods was at 5-under, six shots behind co-leaders Kyle Stanley and Joaquin Niemann.

He was concerned about his repaired back, after tightness affected his game in the opening round. Despite a 90-weather delay after he eagled the 11th, he finished feeling fine.

”It’s weird to say, but this is my first delay this year,” he said. ”Coming back out of..

DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) Joaquin Niemann could figure out where Tiger Woods was on the golf course from the mass of people following him a few groups ahead, and he had a pretty good idea what he was doing from all the noise, at least before Woods put a putter in his hands.

”There was so many people,” Niemann said.

The few that stuck behind for the 19-year-old Chilean saw another good show.

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In his fifth start as a pro, Niemann finished with two birdies over his last three holes for a 4-under 68 and a share of the lead with Kyle Stanley, who had a 66. He finished with an 8-foot birdie on the 18th hole.

Woods made Muirfield Village sound like a rock concert until storms arrived. He holed out with a sand wedge from 97 yards for eagle on the par-5 11th hole, and then his tee shot on the par-3 12th struck the flag waving in the wind and settled 6 feet behind the hole.

And then he sat out a weather delay that lasted just under 90 minutes, and he missed four putts un..

Sarah Jane Smith's 5 birdies on the back 9 helped her take a commanding lead after Day 2.

After finishing up her round at Shoal Creek, Brittany Lincicome got a little history lesson.

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

Not so long ago, the ritzy club hosting this week’s U.S. Women’s Open saw nothing wrong with allowing only white, gentile men to join its membership rolls. Not so long ago, this lush spot nestled among the rolling hills southeast of Birmingham, Alabama was a lightning rod in the struggle for civil rights in sports.

Article continues below …

”Oh my God, I can’t believe that was still in 1990,” Lincicome said. ”I mean, it doesn’t feel like it was that long ago for that to still be happening.”

Indeed, it’s hard to fathom that less than three decades is all one needs to return to a time when it was still acceptable to host a major golf tournament while clinging to exclusionary membership policies based on race, sex or religion.

But the 1990 PGA Championship at Shoal Creek helped to change all that, forcing the PGA Tour, PGA of America and other gov..

Juli Inkster joins Brad Faxon and Shane Bacon to discuss Sarah Jane Smith's mentality heading into Day 3 with the lead.