Yuka Saso Wins The 79th U.S. Women’s Open

Sunday, June 2nd, Yuka Saso made history at the Lancaster Country Club, becoming the first player in USGA history to win the U.S. Women’s Open Presented by Ally on multiple occasions and for two different countries.

Saso claimed her first title three years ago at The Olympic Club in San Francisco, California. During this win, Saso was representing the Philippines, the country of her mother. A few months later, she switched national allegiances to Japan, the country of her father.

While most of the leading contenders seemed to be fading – including the three 54-hole co-leaders Minjee Lee, Wichanee Meechai and Andrea Lee – Saso carded a 2-under 68 for a 72-hole total of 4-under 276, three strokes better than countrywoman and 2019 AIG Women’s British Open champion Hinako Shibuno.

Past USA Curtis Cup competitors, Americans Andrea Lee and Ally Ewing, shared third at even-par 280. Ewing matched the week’s lowest round with a 66, while Lee carded a 75. A qualifier from Thailand, Arpichaya Yubol carded a 69 to finish solo fifth at 1-over 281.

Australian Minjee Lee, the 2022 champion who seemed poised to add a third major title, surprised by never gaining any momentum after the opening-hole birdie, shooting a 78 to ninth at 283. This was the 28-year-olds highest round in a U.S. Women’s Open since a third-round 80 in 2018 at Shoal Creek.
Meechai also seemed to fade from the lead with two consecutive three-putt bogeys to start the day. The 31-year-old from Thailand, who is yet to win in nine seasons on the LPGA Tour, fired a 77 share sixth at 2-over 282 with countrywoman Atthaya Thitikul and Japan’s Ayaka Furue.

Meanwhile, Saso became the youngest to win multiple titles at 22 years, 11 months and 13 days. This is 18 months younger than Hall of Famers Hollis Stacy (24/4/7) and Mickey Wright (24/4/13), who claimed three and four championships respectively.

When Saso, playing with countrywoman Sakura Koiwai in the third-to-last grouping, holed a 21-inch par putt on the 72nd hole, she gave a small fist pump and was then congratulated behind the 18th green from In Gee Chun, 2015 champion at Lancaster Country Club who stuck around despite missing the 36-hole cut. She also received a huge from her father, Masakazu, who was not present when she won in San Francisco. Her mother, Fritzie, was not present. Saso also celebrated with caddie Dylan Vallequette, who was honored by USGA CEO Mike Whan at the prize ceremony.

This was Saso’s first victory since that U.S. Women’s Open triumph at The Olympic Club.
“It feels great,” an emotional Saso told NBC’s Tom Abbott at the prize ceremony. “I think winning in 2021 I represented the Philippines. I feel like I was able to give back to my mom. This year I was able to represent Japan, and I think I was able to give back to my dad. I’m very happy that I was able to do it. It’s just a wonderful feeling that I was able to give back to my parents in the same way.”

Saso appeared to lose control of any early momentum on the par-3 sixth hole with an uncharacteristic four-putt that led to a double bogey. This would be her lone blemish until hole 17, while the other five players in the last three groupings shot a combined 24 over par.

Settling down with five consecutive pars, Saso began making a charge on the back nine. It began with an 11-foot birdie on the par-3 12th, a hole that had derailed quite a few players, including a 10 by world No. 1 Nelly Korda in Thursday’s first round and a double-bogey 5 by Minjee Lee on Sunday.

Saso followed up with an exquisite wedge approach from 77 yards to 3 feet on the par-5 13th hole. Two holes later, her approach from 190 yards stopped 6 feet from the hole for another birdie, getting her to 4 under par and a two-shot lead on the field. With the tees moved up on No. 16 to make it a drivable par 4, Saso found the putting surface with a 237-yard drive to 19 feet, setting up a two-putt birdie.

A hiccup on 17 – a three-putt bogey from 371/2 feet – cost her a stroke but not the competition.
Then, when Andrea Lee failed to get up and down for par from a greenside bunker at 17, Saso could celebrate with Chun and fellow Japanese player Shibuno, nicknamed “Smiling Cinderella.”

This proved to be another disappointing USGA setback for Andrea Lee, who first played in this championship 10 years ago as a 15-year-old. In 17 USGA events, Lee has been a runner-up (2016 U.S. Girls’ Junior), semifinalist twice (2014 and 2019 U.S. Women’s Amateur), a quarterfinalist three times (2014, 2015 U.S. Girls’ Junior, and 2016 U.S. Women’s Amateur) and now third in her sixth U.S. Women’s Open. This on top of being a former world No. 1 amateur, a two-time Curtis Cupper and a member of a Women’s World Amateur Team along with nine victories during her time at Stanford University. Last year, Lee played on her first U.S. Solheim Cup Team.

Lee nervously missed a 4-foot par putt on the opening hole and made a double-bogey 6 on the fourth hole after finding the penalty area off the tee. Another bogey on eight dropped her to 4 over on the day and 1 under for the championship. A 16-foot birdie on the par-3 12th provided some hope for a rally, but she failed to birdie 16, and bogeyed the final two holes, including a 5 at the last that could have earned her a million-dollar payday.

“This was my first time being in the last group of a major championship, both the third and fourth rounds,” said the 25-year-old from Hermosa Beach, California. “I was extremely nervous, but I feel like I learned a lot about how to control my emotions out here. Definitely a lot of positives to take away. I feel like this is only going to make me stronger in the long run and give me some confidence going into the rest of the season.”

Beginning the day two strokes back of the 54-hole tri-leaders, but a front-nine 37 left the 25-year-old Shibuno in chase mode. Another bogey at 10 put her further behind, but she played 1-under golf over the final eight holes to get second.

This was the first time in any major championship – for men or women – that Japanese players went 1-2. She also earned nearly $1.3 million.

Saso, meanwhile, took home $2.4 million, the largest prize in women’s major championship golf.
“I will ask Yuka to buy me something,” said Shibuno.

But money can’t buy the trophy, and now Saso is in procession of it for a second time.