ALBANY, N.Y. — Augusta James leads a foursome of Canadians who are all in contention to win the Symetra Tour’s Fuccillo Kia Championship.
The 22-year-old James, from Bath, Ont., shot a 4-under 67 on Saturday and is 10 under for the tournament — one stroke behind leader Breanna Elliott of Australia.
"I’m happy with the spot I put myself in for tomorrow," said James, who was followed by a large group of friends and family again on Saturday. "I have really great hometown support and a great community that I live in. They are very special and for them to come down here means a lot."
Canadians also hold down third through fifth spot on the leaderboard heading into the final round at Capital Hills.
Sue Kim of Langley, B.C. shot a 65 on Saturday and is two strokes off the lead, Maude-Aimee Leblanc, from Sherbrooke, Que., is 7 under after shooting a 69 while Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. shot a 66 to sit at 6 under.
James was 1-over par through seven holes on Saturday, but followed through with back-to-back birdies on holes eight and nine. She then birdied holes 12, 13 and 16 to finish the second round.
"It was definitely important to end with birdies because I wanted to finish strong and I felt like there was more in my round than what I was at after hole six," said James.
Elliott and James shared the lead after the first round as both players shot a 65 on the opening day.