FL Q-School Thursday: Nocera Takes Charge

I've been teasing Tiffany Joh on twitter that she can't let Gwladys Nocera beat her for medalist honors at the Florida sectional qualifier for LPGA Q-School, but after a 75 from the former and a 68 from the latter yesterday, T-Joh has her work cut out for her later today, as she's 5 behind Nocera, 2 behind Sofie Andersson, and 1 behind Stephanie Connelly and Shasta Averyhardt. I've been impressed by the steadiness thus far of Briana Vega (1 shot behind T-Joh), Lisa Ferrero and Marianne Skarpnord (3 back), and the patience of Paola Moreno (who finally broke through with a 71 to pull within 4 of T-Joh). And even though Maria Hernandez and Malinda Johnson had tough days (75s that moved them back to T25), they just need 1 more solid round to make it the final stage of Q-School in December. The same can't be said for Jennie Lee, though--she needs a low round to climb out of the hole she's dug for herself in the 1st 3 rounds. The odds are better for Nikki Garrett (73, +6, T38) and Caroline Larsson (77, +7, T41). If they can shoot at or just under par today, that's likely to be enough for them to make it to the next stage. Stay tuned!