Budding superstar Rose Zhang shot her second 7-under 65 of the week Saturday and holds the solo 54-hole lead at 18 under at the LPGA’s Maybank Championship in Malaysia.

After a par at Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club’s opening hole, Zhang birdied Nos. 2-4 to jumpstart her third round. Two more birdies at Nos. 7 and 9, and Zhang made the turn in 5-under 31. A birdie at No. 10 was offset by a bogey on 14, but she finished her round with two more circles at 15 and 18.

Maybank: Full leaderboard

“I feel really great. I just feel like being able to have this opportunity to come into the final round with a little bit of a lead is really great,” Zhang told the media after signing her card.

“I think that going forward it’s just making sure I’m having fun, having that game plan, and enjoying every simple moment.”

Rookie sensation

Birdie on 18 puts @rosezhang as the @maybankchampion solo leader heading into the final round! pic.twitter.com/4ZaYdPZwgp

— LPGA (@LPGA) October 28, 2023

Zhang, who went 0-3-1 during her Solheim Cup debut in Spain, has failed to finish inside the top 25 in her last six starts (T-34 at the BMW Ladies Championship in her last appearance). If she goes on to win, it’d be her second LPGA win in 12 professional starts.

Atthaya Thitikul and Jasmine Suwannapura are tied for second a shot behind Zhang at 17 under while Sei Young Kim is alone in fourth at 15 under. Nasa Hataoka, Megan Khang and Peiyun Chien round out the top five at 14 under.

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