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It was a once-in-a-lifetime shot.
No, not a hole-in-one. For Bianca Pagdanganan, it was a drive Friday that nestled into an onlooker’s elbow.
Putting the final touches on a 6-under-par 66 round that left her six shots behind leader Haeran Ryu, Pagdanganan laced her drive well off line to the left on the 530-yard, par 5 18th hole. After a healthy bounce, her Titliest landed in the crook of a bystander’s left arm, cradled in her elbow.
“My caddie told me to hit it up the left side of the fairway and directly into her arms, so that’s what I did,” joked Pagdanganan.
“It was funny because I couldn’t see how far it was going or if I was going to hit them,” Pagdanganan continued. “So when it landed and she didn’t flinch, I was like, ‘OK, she’s fine.’ Then we walked off the tee and they were telling us it landed in her arm. I was like ‘Are you sure because she didn’t move at all.’
“So my caddie and I just kept walking and sure enough, we walk up and they were like ‘Yeah, it landed on my arm and I just tossed it back. I was like ‘You could have tossed it in the fairway!’ “
Pagdanganan is tied for second at 7-under for the tournament. Ranked 110th in the world, she remained upbeat after cruising through the front nine with a 5-under 31.
“Starting off my day, my putting was really good,” she said. “On the front nine, I felt like I could make everything from anywhere.”
Immediately after her post-round interview, Pagdanganan eagerly showed off the bee that she had crocheted for her grandmother. Her boisterous personality does not overtake her vast skill-set, which allowed her to rise up the leaderboard.
“I still couldn’t believe that happened,” said Pagdanganan. “That was the first time I ever have done that.”
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