Charley Hull in the Major mix as 

Lexi leads from Lydia

ANCHO MIRAGE, California– If LPGA commissioner Mike Whan – and Golf Channel – were to script the Sunday leader board for the ANA Inspiration they couldn’t come up with anything better that this desert delight.

Going into Sunday, 11 players are within three strokes of the lead at the first major championship of the year and that list includes one-name players: Lydia, Michelle, Charley, Ai, Lexi and Suzann among them.

At the top of the pyramid at 10 under par is 2014 ANA champion Lexi Thompson, who struggled with the putter but still managed a 69 capped by an eagle on the final hole.

One stroke back are Lydia Ko, No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings, reigning U.S. Women’s Open champ In Gee Chun and Ariya Jutanugarn.

Two behind is Charley Hull with Michelle Wie, Suzann Pettersen, Ai Miyazato, Caroline Masson, Sung Hyun Park and Lee Anne Pace three back at seven under par.

The stage is set for a sizzling Sunday after a Saturday that was none too shabby.

“The scoreboard is definitely packed,” said Wie, who’s lone major is the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst No. 2.

“There’s a lot of big names up there, a lot of players that have won major championships, as well,” she said. “So tomorrow is going to definitely be a test.”

Perhaps most impressive on a day of many great shots was Wie’s two-under-par 70. It was a thing of beauty in an ugly sort of way as she played with the heart of a champion gutting it out on a day when she was far from her A game.

Michelle visited pretty much every remote corner of the Dinah Shore Tournament Course at Mission Hills and still managed to avoid making a bogey.

With a right miss flying off a swing in which she barely made a hip turn, protecting against a hip bothered by bursitis last year, Wie scrambled to save pars eight times as she hit only 10 greens. She was four-for-four on greenside bunker saves and knocked in several six-foot par putts with her modified Jack Nicklaus bent-knee squat, needing only 26 putts.

“You know, that’s what major championships are,” Wie said. “You kind of have to grind it out when you're not hitting the ball as well. But I’m very proud of what I did today. I hung in there, had some good birdies, and hopefully give myself more opportunities tomorrow and take advantage of them.”

Thompson, on the other hand, had a miserable day with the short stick, losing the lead after missing putts inside seven feet on Nos. 8, 9, 10 and 12. But she closed in a blaze of glory, making birdies on 15 and 16, when she hit it stiff, missed a short birdie putt on 17 and then hit her second shot from 207 yards to 15 feet with a 5-iron on No. 18 and made the eagle putt to finish off a 69.

“I was hitting it well, just couldn’t get the putts to drop,” Thompson said. “It’s always great to finish like that on 18.”

Lydia Ko was coolly methodical on her way to a bogey-free 69, hitting 11 of 14 fairways, 14 of 18 greens and using 29 putts. There are few pros anywhere that play with as much joy as she does, and that composure may very well be the strongest part of her game.

Let’s see, it’s the final round of the first major of the year and Lexi, 21, Lydia, 18, Charley, 20, and Michelle, 26, are in the mix. Doesn’t get much better than that.

Images of Catriona Matthew at the tournament taken by Joyce Hunnam (Maplefotos)

THIRD-ROUND SCORES
Yardage: 6,769 Par 216 (3x72)

1	Lexi Thompson	69	68	69	.				206
T2	Ariya Jutanugarn	69	71	67					207
T2	In Gee Chun	69	69	69					207
T2	Lydia Ko	70	68	69					207
T5	Charley Hull	70	69	69					208
T5	Ai Miyazato	67	70	71					208
T7	Caroline Masson	70	71	68					209
T7	Michelle Wie	70	69	70					209
T7	Lee-Anne Pace	68	70	71					209
T7	Sung Hyun Park	71	67	71					209
T7	Suzann Pettersen	71	67	71					209
T12	Pernilla Lindberg	71	73	66					210
T12	Hyo-Joo Kim	71	70	69					210
T12	Catriona Matthew	68	72	70					210
T12	Gerina Piller	69	71	70					210
T16	M.J. Hur	73	72	66					211
T16	Jennifer Song	70	71	70					211
T16	Stacy Lewis	72	68	71					211
T16	Bo-Mee Lee	73	66	72					211
T20	Inbee Park	70	73	69					212
T20	Na Yeon Choi	70	73	69					212
T20	Karine Icher	71	71	70					212
T20	Paula Reto	71	71	70					212
T20	Sun Young Yoo	72	70	70					212
T20	Brittany Lincicome	72	69	71					212
T20	So Yeon Ryu	72	69	71					212
T27	Alena Sharp	70	74	69					213
T27	Mi Hyang Lee	69	73	71					213
T27	Kris Tamulis	71	71	71					213
T27	Danielle Kang	72	70	71					213
T27	Minjee Lee	71	68	74					213
32	Lizette Salas	75	67	75					217
T33	Eun-Hee Ji	75	71	68					214
T33	Austin Ernst	72	72	70					214
T33	Paula Creamer	72	71	71					214
T33	Ayako Uehara	71	72	71					214
T33	Brooke Henderson	73	69	72					214
T33	Amy Yang	69	71	74					214
T33	Ha Na Jang	69	70	75					214
T40	Kelly Tan	70	76	69					215
T40	I.K. Kim	70	74	71					215
T40	Juli Inkster	71	73	71					215
T40	Mo Martin	73	71	71					215
T40	Kelly Shon	74	70	71					215
T40	Anna Nordqvist	72	70	73					215
T40	Jodi Ewart Shadoff	72	68	75					215
T47	Xiyu Lin	71	75	70					216
T47	Jenny Shin	72	74	70					216
T47	Shiho Oyama	68	77	71					216
T47	Hee Young Park	72	73	71					216
T47	Hannah O'Sullivan	72	73	71					216
T47	Beatriz Recari	73	72	71					216
T47	Jacqui Concolino	73	72	71					216
T47	Haru Nomura	76	69	71					216
T47	Mika Miyazato	71	71	74					216
T56	Albane Valenzuela	73	73	71					217
T56	Ryann O'Toole	69	76	72					217
T56	Q Baek	73	70	74					217
T59	Chella Choi	74	72	72					218
T59	Karrie Webb	72	73	73					218
T59	Wei-Ling Hsu	73	72	73					218
T59	Marina Alex	75	70	73					218
T63	Annie Park	73	73	73					219
T63	Azahara Munoz	67	78	74					219
T63	Carlota Ciganda	72	73	74					219
T63	Julieta Granada	76	69	74					219
T67	Candie Kung	71	74	75					220
T67	Cristie Kerr	75	70	75					220
T67	Jin Young Ko	73	71	76					220
T67	Shanshan Feng	71	72	77					220
T71	Ilhee Lee	74	72	75					221
T71	Alison Lee	72	73	76					221
73	Mariajo Uribe	77	69	76					222
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