Pittsford, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Brittany Lincicome carded a 1-under 71 on Saturday to maintain her place atop the leaderboard at the LPGA Championship.
Lincicome, the 2009 Kraft Nabisco champion, finished 54 holes at Monroe Golf Club at 10-under-par 206. The five-time winner on the LPGA Tour is trying to become the fourth straight American to win a major this season, joining Lexi Thompson, Michelle Wie and Mo Martin.
"I just tried to take multiple deep breathes out there," said Lincicome. "I don't think I calmed down until really the back nine probably. Hopefully going into tomorrow it's out of my system and I kind of know what it feels like again to be in this position and will dominate again."
Defending champion Inbee Park (69) and 2007 LPGA Championship winner Suzann Pettersen (67) are tied for second place at 9-under.
Mirim Lee (69), who won last week at the Meijer LPGA Classic, is alone in fourth at minus-7.
Lydia Ko (71), Gerina Piller (69) and Meena Lee (71) shared fifth pace at 6- under 210.
Lincicome entered the third round with a 3-stroke lead and maintained that advantage until Park birdied the fourth to move within two at 7-under.
She would be joined there by Meena Lee after she rolled in birdies at the third and sixth.
Lincicome tripped to a 3-putt bogey at the fifth to cut her lead to just one, but she then stuck her approach to two feet at the seventh and kicked that in for a birdie to get back to minus-9.
After Park birdied the eighth to move within one of the lead at 8-under, Lincicome picked up a shot at the ninth to reach 10-under and regain her 2- shot lead.
Lincicome would then record bogeys at the 10th and 13th around a birdie at the 12th to fall to minus-9.
Pettersen, meanwhile, made the turn at 5-under after countering an opening bogey with birdies at the second and third. She then rolled in birdies at the 10th, 11th, 14th and 15th to reach 9-under and claim a share of the lead.
But the tie did not last long, as Lincicome answered with a birdie at the 14th to again reach 10-under and take the outright lead.
Pettersen parred her final three holes to end at 9-under.
"It was a lot of fun out there, but the greens were a bit firmer today and a little bit faster," Pettersen said. "There were a couple of tricky pin positions, like 18 is not an easy one. Five-under today was a good score."
Park birdied the 14th to grab a share of second place with Pettersen, but bogeyed the 15th to fall back to minus-8.
She got back to 9-under with about a 10-foot birdie putt at the 17th and got up and down for par at the last to remain a shot off the pace of Lincicome, who parred her final four holes.
NOTES: Lincicome's best finish at this event was a tie for sixth in 2007 ... She is trying to become the first American to win this championship since Cristie Kerr in 2010 ... Pettersen has finished inside the top five in her last eight majors. That run includes a win at the 2014 Evian Championship.
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