Australian Gabriela Ruffels has moved into position to win the Epson Tour event in Arizona.

The 22-year-old Ruffels shot a 5-under par 67 at Longbow Golf Club today to go with earlier rounds of 65-67 to reach 14-under and take a two-shot lead into the final round of the Carlisle Arizona Women’s Classic.

Her nearest pursuer is Min A Yoon from South Korea at 12-under, the winner of the TPS Victoria event at Rosebud earlier in this Australasian season, along with American Kathleen Scavo.

Ruffels is playing just her second Epson Tour event of the season having spent the first part of the year on the Ladies European Tour, where she is just outside the top 20 in the points list.

The tournament has a prize pool of $US335,000 but just as importantly, a win would give Ruffels a strong chance of pushing her way on to the LPGA Tour.

The top 10 Epson Tour players at the end of the season all graduate.

Ruffels has played on the LPGA numerous times, but mostly as an amateur. Her only professional win was on the Cactus Tour in 2022