Yuka Saso could not produce an Olympic medal for now, but the young golfer hopes to take the lessons from the Tokyo experience into her upcoming tournaments.
The 20-year-old Filipino-Japanese standout will take those lessons when she competes at the 2021 Scottish Open starting on Thursday. This is a precursor to the next LPGA major championship in the AIG Women’s Open the following week.
Saso will go up against a star-studded field which includes Olympic bronze medalist Lydia Ko, Evian winner Minjee Lee of Australia, ANA Inspiration champion Patty Tavatanakit, and the reigning AIG Women’s Open titleholder Sophia Popov.
The current U.S. Women’s Open champion will look to add the title of the said Scottish tournaments beginning on Thursday at 3:20 p.m. (Manila time).
Saso recently reclaimed the No. 8 spot in the International Golf Federation World Rankings in women’s side. She had a strong finish in her first-ever appearance in the Olympics, which saw her take a share of ninth place despite the struggle in the opening round.
The Asian Games titleholder slid to the 10th spot prior to Tokyo, but she has gathered enough points to jump two spots back up in the said current placement.
Nelly Korda of the USA kept her place at the top of the leaderboard after claiming the Olympic title in the slimmest of margins — a solitary stroke — against Japan’s Inami Mone and New Zealand’s Lydia Ko.
Meanwhile, the other two Filipinos in the LPGA Tour took contrasting fates in the rankings. Bianca Pagdanganan jumped a few spots higher to 173rd, while Dottie Ardina dropped a spot down to 273rd.
