At the Honda LPGA Thailand (total prize money of 1.7 million U.S. dollars), the winner of the LPGA Tour, there is a player who attracted as much attention as Angel-in of the U.S. It is Akie Iwai of Japan who finished second.
At the Siam Country Club Old Course (par 72) in Pattaya, Chonburi, Thailand on Sunday, E-Wai tied an eagle, 10 birdies and one bogey to post 11-under 61. E-Wai, who recorded 27-under 261 overall, finished the race alone in second place, one stroke shy of the winner.
EY took the lead by shooting 10-under par in the first round and maintained the lead until the second round. EY then cut only one shot in the third round, falling five shots behind In, who was leading the way.
It almost ended up with In's bland victory, but EY's persistent determination stood out on the last day. EY had 10 birdies through Hole 16, chasing In by one stroke with a duel that involved In and match play. EY had a bogey at Hole 17 (par 4) to become a two-par difference between In and In, which effectively resulted in him missing the championship, but he did not give up until the end.
EY tried to throw a 2 on with the wood at the last 18th hole (par 5), and the ball landed near the green edge behind the pin. With a 5.5 meter eagle putt, Yin finished the 18th hole first with a tie-in. Yin targeted the narrow left side of the green and responded with an eagle opportunity. Although he missed the eagle, he did not miss the 80 centimeter birdie putt, and Yin won the title by one stroke.
Born in 2002, YIY is a proven rookie who has won six times in the Japan Ladies Professional Golf Association (JLPGA) Tour. She tied for fifth in the LPGA qualifying series in December last year, and joined the U.S. stage this year with her twin sister, Jisato. Only the top rankers participated in the competition based on her performance last year, so rookie YY did not have a chance to participate, but she participated at the invitation by sponsor, and made remarkable achievements.
EY hit a drive shot 276 yards on the day, and Green only missed once, boasting 25 "salty water putts."
"Inner played so perfectly. There was no room to dig in," EY said after the match. "He was much better than me. I was happy to play in the champion's group for the first time as a member of the LPGA Tour and had a good experience."
This year's LPGA Tour is her first competition for the Rookie of the Year award in a long time. Yoon Na-na, who emerged as a popular star last year by winning three KLPGA Tour titles (Grand Prize, Prize Winner, and Least Place winner), made her LPGA Tour debut this year, drawing keen attention from Korean fans.
However, Yoon has to deal with four Japanese rookies by herself. Other contenders include Miyu Yamashita (No. 13), who is currently the world's highest ranking, and sisters Rio Takeda (No. 16), Akie Iwai (No. 33), and Ssitto (No. 52). Yoon's world ranking is No. 22. 온라인카지노
The sisters Akie Iwai and Chisato had three wins each in the JLPGA tour last year, ranking fourth and fifth in the prize money rankings. Yamashita has 13 wins overall in the JLPGA tour and passed the LPGA Tour's Q Series at the top. Takeda went straight to the LPGA Tour by winning the sixth playoff at the Toto Japan Classic in Japan in November last year. Takeda, who was born in 2003, swept a whopping eight wins in Japan last year, winning the top prize and the grand prize.
Although only three LPGA tours are in the early stages of this season, Japanese rookies are already showing strong performance in the rookie award competition. Takeda, a two-time top-10 player in the three competitions, took the top spot (114 points) in the rookie award rankings, and EYWI, the runner-up in the latest competition, took the second spot with 80 points. Japanese players ranked from first to fourth, with Yamashita ranking third (70 points) and Iwai Zisato ranking fourth (26 points). Yoon has yet to win any points for the rookie award as she failed to make the cut in one competition.
Yoon In-na, who is expected to have a tough fight, should earn as many CME Globe points as possible until the Black Desert Championship on May 2, when the first round of rankings takes place. This is because there are some competitions in which rookies who debuted on the LPGA Tour through the Q Series are restricted from participating because their rankings are lower than those of the top players.