LANCASTER, Pa. — Yuka Sasao rallied from three strokes behind to make golf history at the U.S. Women’s Open. Buoyed by four birdies on the back nine, Sasao shot a 2-under 68 in the final round to win by three strokes over Hinako Shibuno at Lancaster Country Club on Sunday.
At 22 years, 11 months and 13 days old, Sasao became the youngest golfer to win the U.S. Women’s Open twice. She won her first title in a playoff at the Olympic Club in San Francisco in 2021. At the time, she became the first player from the Philippines, her mother’s native country, to win the U.S. Open. Her most recent victory came while representing Japan, her father’s native country.
She is the first Japanese player to win the U.S. Women’s Open and declared her Japanese citizenship in November 2021, officially completing the process two months later. She is also the third player, after Pak Se-ri and Chung In-gee, to have her first two wins on the LPGA Tour come at two major championships.
“Winning in 2021 is [when] “I think I was able to repay my mom by representing the Philippines,” said Saso, who finished with a 4-under 276 and won a record $2.4 million in winnings. “I was able to repay my dad by representing Japan this year, and I’m very happy that I was able to do that. It’s a really great feeling to be able to give back to my parents in the same way.”
Sasao won her fourth world title since turning professional in 2019, but her recent performances have given little indication that she can thrive here: She missed the cut in her last tournament, the Mizuho Americas Open, and finished tied for 29th and 30th in her two previous starts.
But on the sport’s biggest stage, Saso made two consecutive birdies on the 16th hole to move to five under par, three strokes behind leader Andrea Li, who had tied for third the previous day, and one stroke back with four holes to go. Andrea Li, in her final pairing with Australia’s Minjee Li, couldn’t make a comeback, so Saso closed with a bogey-par and the celebrations began. Li and American Ali Ewing, who shot a final-round 66, tied for third at even-par 280.
“Sometimes I get frustrated with other things, I don’t know how to explain it,” Saso said. “I think if I just stay in the moment and focus on every shot and try to go through my normal routine, I’m able to calm down a little bit and be a little more patient.”
Saso birdied the 12th and 13th holes to reach 3 under par and take sole possession of the lead. Soon after, on the 12th hole, Minjee Lee’s dream of winning her second U.S. Women’s Open in three years was dashed. On the 163-yard par-3, her tee shot missed the putting surface and rolled into the creek ahead, dropping her to even par with a double bogey.
After two bogeys and a double bogey in the first nine holes, Andrea Li birdied the 12th hole to rejoin the mix at 2-under.
“There were a lot of good things that came out of this week,” she said. “I was really nervous in both the third and fourth rounds because it was the final group of a major, but I feel like I learned a lot here about how to control my emotions. There were definitely a lot of good things that came out of this.”
Andrea Lee, who was in the lead after 54 holes, Minjee Lee, and Wichanee Meechai of Thailand, who finished tied for sixth place at two over par with a final score of 77, all finished the first half at a combined score of 11 over par in partly cloudy but mostly calm conditions before a drizzle began in the late afternoon.
“I think I played a lot of good things today, but obviously I didn’t play very well. I’m disappointed that I didn’t play better,” said Minjee Lee, ranked ninth in the world. “Obviously, I’ll acknowledge the disappointment and come back stronger and take the positives from this week. … The pressure was so much on the final day that it wasn’t my best performance, but I expect to perform better from now on.”
