By: Max Bechtoldt
Sophia Popov is a famous name in the world of golf because of her iconic long shot victory at the 2020 AIG Women’s Open. She has the chance to do so again.
When Popov won her first major title, still her only win on the LPGA Tour, she was ranked No. 304 in the Rolex Rankings. She is currently ranked No. 496. To be fair, most of that is because of her pregnancy and the birth of her daughter in June of 2023.
She placed in the top 15 at the most recent LPGA Tour event, the Mizuho Americas Open, but prior to that, her last made cut was in the 2022 Scottish Open. Her last top-10 finish was at the Shadow Creek Match Play in 2021.
Still, she has put herself in strong position to have another magical weekend, this time at America’s open. Through 27 holes she is just one back of the lead at -1. She has made five birdies, four bogeys, one double bogey (shocker, on hole 12) and a hole in one on hole eight Thursday.
Popov is hitting more greens than almost anyone in the field, and the one on the scorecard never hurts. Cinderella has already struck once for Popov, come Sunday, it could again.
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