Women's Olympic Golf Set Up For Grand (And Starting Earlier For Weather) Saturday Conclusion

After years of wondering about possible medal scenarios, we're set up for a fun finish to the women's Olympic golf, assuming the thunderstorms hold off and a few more fans show up. Friday's high winds produced some stellar golf and separated the leaderboard.

Steve DiMeglio sets up the concluding day, where Inbee Park looks to add to her Hall of Fame career with a gold medal, and who knows, possibly her last significant appearance on a grand stage. American Gerina Piller, still searching for her first pro win, played what she called a possible career round to get herself in the final group and in medal contention.

Park will also be pursued by Lydia Ko, vaulted herself into the medal race on the back of an 8th hole ace, her first ace ever in competition. Rex Hoggard on Ko's hopes to medal and face off with Inbee Park.

Here is the video.

China's Xiyu Lin previously made the first hole-in-one in women's golf history on Friday at the same hole, which, I can say having seen it in person, is no easy hole location to get to.

Bob Harig explains what happened to first round leader Ariya Jutanugarn, who was +12 thru 13 Friday before WD'ing with an injury.

Aditi Ashok was hanging in nicely through 10 but the winds and a tough stretch of holes took the Cinderella story out of contention. However, India's 18-year-old representative has nothing to be ashamed of.

Marianne Skarpnord found herself in a DJ-oscillate situation and it was all caught on camera along with the conversation with an official, all picked up thanks to an aggressive audio technician. Hoggard explains what happened and why the ruling went the way it did.

An unbylined IGF story ID's all of the family members caddying in the women's competition, and it's a long list.

Speaking of caddies, Mike Clayton is on the bag for Australia's Su Oh, who posted a 66 and moved to within five strokes of the bronze position. An unbylined Australian Olympic Committee story includes quotes from Oh mentioning her golf architect looper.

Here's the Golf Channel lowdown on Saturday's tee times, which were moved up due to an ominous afternoon weather forecast. :

-Live final round coverage of the Women’s Olympic Golf competition gets underway at 6 a.m. ET on Saturday morning on Golf Channel, immediately following Golf Central Live From the Olympics, airing from 5-6 a.m. ET.
 
-In order to avoid potential inclement weather in the afternoon, groups will be going off split tees on Saturday (No. 1 and 10), with the leaders beginning their final round at 7:39 am ET. Barring any playoffs, the expectation is for golf to conclude around 1 p.m. ET, with the medal ceremony immediately following.

Here is the latest on ratings:

Golf Channel’s second-round coverage is the highest-rated live weekday round of any women’s golf event in more than two years across all dayparts including primetime (Noon-3:14 pm ET; 0.23 US HH rating, 316,000 average viewers), dating back to the second round of the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst (6/20/14; 0.44 U.S. HH rating on ESPN2). Additionally, the Olympics round two is the most-watched Thursday of women’s golf coverage since round one of the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open on ESPN2 (6/19/14; 437,000 average viewers).