Marina Alex fired an eagle on her final hole to take a one-shot lead following the second round of the Manulife LPGA Classic on Friday.
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Lee has a one-stroke lead over Korean compatriot Kim Hyo-Joo following 54 holes at the Whistle Bear Golf Club in Cambridge, Ontario, on Saturday.
“I’ve been close”, Alex said of playing in the final group on Saturday.
Minjee Lee said the eventual tournament victor will need to get off to a fast start Sunday.
“I made a lot of birdies today. I made six birdies and one eagle, but I didn’t know that”, said Lee. It was a little wonderful for me.
Sharp, who began the day at 5-under and as top Canadian, bogeyed two of the first four holes. The New Zealander predicted she would need another hot round to reel in Lee and the other frontrunners.
“I’m not really anxious about the leader”, said Ariya, who won the Women’s British Open and Canadian Women’s Open in her last two starts. When the leaders are like that, you know you kind of need to be on that stick or even better when you’re trying to catch up. I wish my shower was just a regular shower, but maybe I’m going to have that in a few minutes.
Later pairings, including Lee and Kim, passed Ko, forcing her into a tie for seventh with Scotland’s Catriona Matthew (66) and American Lizette Salas (66) at 10 under.
Alex holds the lead heading into the weekend for the first time in her LPGA career. An official scorer had to be consulted and she was allowed a relief from a provisional spot to the right of the grandstand.
“And I mean you can’t really control what anyone else is doing, so as long as you are doing your 100 per cent, I guess you’ll have no regrets and you can’t really be angry or sad about how you play”.
Lying three with her provisional and still 100 yards from the green, Henderson hit to within 12 feet and then sunk a clutch putt to save bogey for a minus-6 finish. “That’s just the way it goes”.
The crowds may have been focused on Henderson, but all four Canadians have enjoyed the support of the hometown fans.
Canadian star Brooke Henderson tied for 39th at 7 under after a 71.
“I didn’t make many putts”, Sharp said.
“It was great to see a lot of people out here and especially a lot of juniors”, said Ko, a native of New Zealand.
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The world No.1 followed a two-under 70 in the first round with a even par 72 to sit at two-under in a tie for 44th after two rounds of the Manulife LPGA Classic in Cambridge.
