Tag: Marathon LPGA Classic

Japan’s Nasa Hataoka wins rain-shortened Marathon LPGA Classic

Hataoka hit just two shots on Sunday before play was suspended and the tournament was shortened to 54 holes.

Nasa Hataoka hit two shots on Sunday at the Marathon LPGA Classic before play was suspended. She took a 40-minute nap in her car, drank some coffee and listened to music before getting out to stretch.

And then, suddenly, Hataoka was once again a winner on the LPGA without hitting another shot. After rain saturated Highland Meadows Golf Club for hours, the LPGA shortened the event to 54 holes. Hataoka collected her fourth LPGA title and her first since 2019.

“Not being able to win recently I was kind of losing my confidence,” said the Japanese star through an interpreter, “but I guess this win is really giving me confidence.”

Play on Sunday began at 7 a.m. and was suspended at 9:40 a.m. Hataoka, 22, finished at 19 under, six strokes ahead of Americans Elizabeth Szokol and Mina Harigae, who earned the best finish of their LPGA careers.

“Unfortunately, at about 9:40, just with the amount of rain that we had we started losing some greens,” Donna Mummert, LPGA senior manager of rules and competition told Golf Channel. “That’s what took us down this morning and rain just continued and here we are. We went back out a couple times thinking we were going to catch a break. Fairways were ultimately what made the decision for us.”

Due to a Monday forecast that called for more rain and storms in the greater Toledo area, officials determined that Monday was not an option. Next week’s Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational begins on Wednesday in Midland, Michigan.

Hataoka played with a pink ribbon on her hat in support of Jane Park and Pete Godfrey, whose 10-month-old daughter Grace remains in critical condition in Texas. Hataoka donated $1,000 to the GoFundMe account set up by Park’s close friend and fellow tour player Tiffany Joh. So far, $78,445 has been raised in support.

“I know Jane and I also know Pete very well,” said Hataoka, “so it was really, really sad to hear the condition of her little baby.

“I’m just going to wish them best for them and hope that we can meet up again.”

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Hataoka began the Marathon with a blistering 10-under 61 and her 19-under 194 set the tournament’s 54-hole scoring record. The previous mark of 195 was set three times – Se Ri Pak (1998), Paula Creamer (2008) and Eunjung Yi (2009). All three players went on to win the tournament.

Hataoka credited her recent work with Gary Gilchrist on distance control with her irons for carding a career-best 61 Thursday that included six consecutive birdies on Nos. 15-2. (She started on the back nine.)

Hataoka tied Hiromi Kobayashi for the third-most victories by a Japanese player, behind Ayako Okamoto (17) and Ai Miyazato (9). The victory bodes well for Japan’s top-ranked player ahead of the Summer Games in Tokyo.

“I’m really, really going to work hard to represent all the Japanese golfers that couldn’t make it to the tournament and go for the gold,” said Hataoka, who was disappointed to learn that fans will not be allowed at the Olympics after Japan declared a state of emergency due to COVID-19.

Hataoka lost in a playoff to Yuka Saso last month at the U.S. Women’s Open and played with an Olympic Club ball-marker in Toledo.

“I think I’m using it to remind myself that I’m not going to go through that kind of situation and I’m just going to keep going,” she said. “Every time I look at it, it reminds me to just keep going and go for a win. That’s what I use it for.”

Next week, Hataoka will team up with Lexi Thompson at the Dow, but neither will continue on to the Amundi Evian Championship in France. Five top-15 players in the world are skipping the tour’s next major, including Danielle Kang, Hannah Green and Saso.

“It was a really hard decision for me whether to play Evian or not. Because Olympics was my dream to be able to play in it, I decided to go back early and get ready for the Olympics,” Hataoka said.

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Yuka Saso asked a former World No. 1 Stacy Lewis for an autograph at the Marathon LPGA Classic

Saso won the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open at The Olympic Club.

Yuka Saso might be the LPGA’s newest major champion, but that didn’t stop her from asking for an autograph at the Marathon LPGA Classic.

“I said, ‘Is this for you?’ ” asked Stacy Lewis, “and she kind of put her head down and said, ‘Yes.’ So I put her name on it and everything.”

Saso, the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open champion who is currently ranked No. 8 in the world, played alongside Lewis for the first two rounds in Toledo. The 20-year-old became a member of the LPGA after her triumph at The Olympic Club. Lewis raved not only about her talent, but her fun energy as well.

“I’m 16 years older than her,” said Lewis, “but if that’s what’s coming up, we’re in a great spot.”

Saso, who modeled her swing after golf idol Rory McIlroy, tied for fifth at the Marathon at 11 under after the event was reduced to 54 holes due to inclement weather. Nasa Hataoka won the event at 19 under.

The Filipino star is getting a crash course in all things LPGA.

“I was in the driving range and (tournament director) Judd Silverman came and welcomed me saying this is like one of the oldest tournament in LPGA,” said Saso after Saturday’s round.

“That day I just found out, so I was really happy and thankful that I was able to come here and able to play. You know, golf course is really in good shape, and the people here is so nice. They’re like cheering. There is a lot of people, too.”

Saso, like Hataoka, won’t be at the next major, however, as she has pulled out of the Amundi Evian Championship. Five of the top-15 players in the world have decided not to go to France, including Danille Kang, Lexi Thompson and Hannah Green.

Saso will compete next week in the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational with Minjee Lee as her partner.

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Nasa Hataoka keeps pulling away at Marathon LPGA Classic, with lead now at six shots

With four birdies in her final five holes on Saturday at the Marathon LPGA Classic, Nasa Hataoka set up what could become a runaway victory.

With four birdies in her final five holes on Saturday at the Marathon LPGA Classic, Nasa Hataoka set up what could become a runaway victory at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania, Ohio. All those birdies – plus four more on the front nine and only one bogey – added up to a 7-under 64 for the 22-year-old from Japan. Remarkably, it’s the second-lowest score Hataoka has posted just this week after opening with 61.

At 19 under, Hataoka now leads Elizabeth Szokol and Mina Harigae by six shots. She also owns a new 54-hole scoring record at the long-running LPGA event.

“When I first was here, it was my rookie year and I really played awful, so when I’m playing the way I am right now, it really makes me think how much I grew up, how much better I’ve gotten,” said Hataoka, who knocked in eight birdies and one three-putt bogey on Saturday. “Right now I’m not going to think about the winning. I’m just going to concentrate on playing the best.”

Should Hataoka be able to finish the job on Sunday, she would earn her fourth victory and tie Hiromi Kobayashi as the winningest Japanese LPGA Tour player.

Harigae and Szokol, meanwhile, are looking to become first-time winners on the LPGA. Harigae already hit a bit of a personal milestone by playing in Saturday’s final group for the first time in her career – something she’ll do again on Sunday.

“I’ve seen the scores out here. Some girls, you can go really low out here, but you just never know. Golf is a funny game,” said Harigae, who shot a 3-under 68 on Saturday. “I think if I just keep my head down and keep going forward, it might pan out.”

Hataoka wasn’t the only player to go exceptionally low on Saturday. Yuka Saso, the recent U.S. Women’s Open winner, also fired a 64. Hers included an eagle at the par-4 ninth.

With that hot round, Saso reached 11 under, and is still eight shots off the lead.

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Nasa Hataoka maintains lead at Marathon LPGA Classic with second-round 69

After 13 holes, Nasa Hataoka was 2 over in her Friday round but then she caught fire, making four birdies in a row.

Nasa Hataoka opened her week at the Marathon LPGA Classic with a blistering 61, and after posting a 2-under 69 on Friday, she takes a two-shot lead into the weekend at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania, Ohio.

It was slow going in her second round. She bogeyed her opening hole, and when she later bogeyed the 13th, she found herself 2 over for the day. But she got things going with four straight birdies on Nos. 14, 15, 16 and 17 before closing with a par.

Hataoka is the winner of three events on the LPGA, most recently the 2019 Kia Classic. In June, Hataoka lost in a playoff to Yuka Saso at the Olympic Club in the U.S. Women’s Open.

Mina Harigae shot her second-straight 5-under 66 and moved to solo second at 10 under. Alison Lee and Elizabeth Szokol also shot 66s and were tied for third at 9 under. Esther Henseleit had the best score Friday with a 7-under 64 and was tied for fifth with Jennifer Kupcho, Gerina Piller, Chella Choi and Lauren Stephenson.

Among those who missed the cut were Sophia Popov. A year ago she used a pull cart and finished in a tie for ninth in this event as a member of the Symetra Tour. That got her into the AIG Women’s Open, which she won as the 304th-ranked player in the world.

Amateurs Rachel Heck and Kennedy Swann, who battled for the NCAA title in Arizona in May, also missed the cut.

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Japan’s Nasa Hataoka rockets to top with blistering 61 at Marathon LPGA Classic

Hataoka carded her 10th birdie on the seventh hole (her 16th) at Highland Meadows Golf Club and then parred in to post a personal-best 61.

After Nasa Hataoka made her ninth birdie of the day, shooting 59 crossed her mind for the first time on Thursday at the Marathon Classic. She had three holes left to play.

Hataoka carded her 10th birdie on the seventh hole (her 16th) at Highland Meadows Golf Club and then parred in to post a personal-best 10-under 61.

Paula Creamer holds the course record of 60 at Highland Meadows, carded in the first round in 2008. Twenty years ago, Annika Sorenstam shot the only 59 in tour history. There have been five 60s on the LPGA, with Jessica Korda recording the most recent at the season-opening Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions.

“Everything was just right at the center,” said Hataoka, “so I guess I would say it was the zone, yes. I was able to control everything.”

Hataoka, 22, birdied six consecutive holes starting on No. 15 (her sixth hole), a personal record. Her previous best round on the LPGA was 63.

“I think what was really working is I was able to control my iron shots to make sure I could get close to the pin to get the birdies,” said Hataoka, who’d been focusing on that part of her game since she missed the cut at the KPMG Women’s PGA.

Hataoka, a three-time winner on the LPGA who will represent Japan next month at Summer Games in Tokyo, built an early four-shot lead over Lauren Stephenson, who carded a bogey-free 65. The former Alabama star said she didn’t touch a club for eight days coming into this event.

“I felt pretty tired at KPMG because that was my sixth week,” she said, “so I knew I needed to just take a good break.”

Stephenson has two top 10s in her last six starts, finding momentum after she borrowed a putter from her host family at the HUGEL-AIR PREMIA LA Open.

“I obviously haven’t won,” said Stephenson, “but I know it’s around the corner at some point.

“I know I’m good enough to be out here, so just keeping my name up there and doing as well as I can is always the goal.”

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‘My God, things have changed a lot in a year’: Sophia Popov returns to the Marathon Classic, where a top 10 changed everything

Sophia Popov’s golf fairytale began at last year’s Marathon LPGA Classic. Oh, how things have changed for the German in a year.

When Sophia Popov got to the tee at the Inverness Club on Tuesday, the starter approached and said, “It’s a different job this year, isn’t it?”

Popov was at Inverness for a pro-am event ahead of the Marathon Classic in Toledo and raved about its mint condition. She’ll be back for the Solheim Cup Sept. 4-6. The starter, of course, was referring to the last time Popov was at Inverness in July 2020 for the LPGA Drive On event, where she caddied for good friend Anne van Dam.

The next week Popov, then a Symetra Tour member, played in the Marathon Classic. She used a pull cart and tied for ninth. She was one of 10 players who qualified for the AIG Women’s Open via a strong finish at the Marathon, though she didn’t realize it until van Dam told her after the round.

What happened next, of course, is the fairy-tale part: Popov, then ranked 304th in the world, won the British Open.

“When I played the practice rounds (this week), I went through some of the holes and how I had played them,” said Popov, “and I remembered just having my push cart. I’m like, ‘My God, things have changed a lot in a year.’”

The push cart is back in Arizona, where she uses it often for practice. Plenty of players have come up this week and reminded Popov of how much has changed, when she seemingly came from out of the blue to win a major.

“To me,” she said, “not out of the blue.”

Unlike last year, there is no major qualifying this week on the line at the Marathon as the field for the Amundi Evian Championship, to be played later this month, is already set. There is, however, a spot reserved for this week’s winner.

LPGA: Marathon LPGA Classic - First Round
Sophia Popov from Germany brought a JuCad pull cart with her for the tournament and is going from the second to the third hole during the first round of the Marathon LPGA Classic golf tournament at Highlands Meadows Golf Club. (Photo: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports)

Popov will compete in her first Evian this summer. She’ll also represent Germany in the Olympics in August. The firsts are flying for the 28-year-old USC grad who is now ranked 23rd in the world.

“I think right after the British last year I knew they had pushed the Olympics back a year,” said Popov, “and I figured with my world ranking now I’m probably going to take the top German spot, which was one of the first things that popped in my mind right then and there. I think I can actually make this happen for Tokyo next year.

“It’s been a big dream of my national team coach, too. He’s been my coach since 2006. He said, ‘We’re going to Tokyo,’ and I was like, ‘Hate to crush your dreams.’

“But then in the end it all worked out, and it’s been pretty special to know I’m on that team.”

For Popov, competing in Tokyo will fulfill a family dream that dates back generations. Her younger brother, Nicholas, swam for the University of Arizona and barely missed out on qualifying for the London Olympics. Mom Claudia swam for Stanford and never saw her Olympic dream come to fruition.

“You know,” said Popov, “with my mom not being able to travel in 1980 to Moscow, it’s just been something that has always been a sporting event that’s been so important to her, as well as us kids.”

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Lydia Ko looks to end two-year victory drought at Marathon Classic, where she leads by 4

Lydia Ko, who currently ranks 55th, finds herself in position to make quite a statement on Sunday at the Marathon LPGA Classic.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – It’s been 833 days since Lydia Ko last hoisted a trophy.

There was another near two-year drought before that one too. One victory in four years makes Ko’s once-dominant stretch seem like ancient history. So much has changed since the prodigious Kiwi last ruled the world on June 11, 2017. Heck, another player with the same last name even took over as No. 1 – Jin Young Ko.

Lydia Ko became the top-ranked player in the world for the first time on Feb. 2, 2015. She gave it back to Inbee Park for a stretch but ultimately stayed there for a total of 104 weeks.

Since then, six different players have been No. 1 in the world on the LPGA.

Ko, who currently ranks 55th, finds herself in position to make quite a statement on Sunday at the Marathon LPGA Classic. It’s a comfortable place for Ko, who has won here twice already, including a playoff victory in 2016.

The 23-year-old with the old soul looks at ease at Highland Meadows. With no leaderboards on the fan-free course, it’s been difficult for Ko to keep track of exactly how well she’s playing. In the scoring tent on Thursday, Ko turned to her caddie, Jason Hamilton, and asked him to confirm that she’d carded a 64. On Saturday, she didn’t know that she led by four over Danielle Kang until a reporter mentioned it in the flash area.

Casual Ko has never looked more fit either. She downed protein shakes during the LPGA’s long break and put on 7 pounds of muscle in two weeks. She doesn’t feel quite as good as she looks, however, as sudden back pain has caused her to get treatment mid-round. It hurts the most, she said, when she bends down. She jokingly told Hamilton that he needed to start teeing up her ball.

“I don’t have a back injury,” said Ko, “I think this is a one-off thing.”

Ko, who leads the field at 16 under, also plans to keep swinging aggressively on Sunday, she said, because doing that doesn’t make it hurt more.

“There’s probably no player out there that’s not fighting something,” said Ko. “I think this is a very minor thing. … It’s sometimes what Ibuprofen is for.”

Kang, last week’s winner of the LPGA Drive On Championship, described Saturday’s second-round 70 as “frustrating, annoying and irritating.”

“The golf course was very firm today,” said the 27-year-old who rose to No. 2 in the world this week. “Definitely a different release on the greens. I couldn’t really get adjusted as easily as normal. The wedges were either rolling out 18 yards some holes, and some holes it was only rolling out 2. I couldn’t really get the consistency of it.”

Minjee Lee and Jodi Ewart Shadoff are tied for third at 10 under. Ewart Shadoff played in the final group on Sunday at Inverness and struggled to a fifth-place finish. She’ll be in the penultimate group alongside Lee in the Marathon’s final round, looking for her first tour victory.

Good friends Ko and Kang will make up the final twosome. The pair first met at the 2011 U.S. Women’s Amateur, when Kang won her second consecutive Women’s Amateur title. (Ko won it in 2012.)

“(Danielle) has really taken me under her wing,” said Ko. “She’s been a big sister. There’s a few girls that I call like my big sister and she’s one of them. It’s been pretty awesome to see her play well, but that’s why it’s more important that I’m out there tomorrow just focusing on my game and enjoying being with her, and hopefully we’ll both have a good time.”

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Lydia Ko leads Marathon LPGA Classic heading into weekend

Among her 15 career LPGA titles, two are from the Marathon LPGA Classic, which Lydia Ko leads by one shot heading into the weekend.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Lydia Ko doesn’t have a “proper trophy case” in her Florida home.

“Maybe if I get a few more,” she joked.

But she has been staring at her trophies quite a bit lately after the family turned the spare room that housed her trophy cabinets into a gym during quarantine. There are mats on the floor, a little indoor sauna, a Peloton and a view that every day reminded Ko of a jaw-droppingly good run that practically broke every youngest-to record in the books.

Among her 15 career LPGA titles, two are from the Marathon LPGA Classic, which Ko leads by one shot over Jodi Ewart Shadoff heading into the weekend. Ewart Shadoff carded a flawless 63 on Friday while last week’s winner Danielle Kang sits in third, two shots back.

Ko, like everyone else, can’t believe she’s already in her seventh year on tour. Her first LPGA title came in 2012 when she became the youngest player to win at 15 years, 8 months old. Her last victory came more than two years ago.

Leaderboard | Tee times

“I can get into these kind of streaks,” said Ko. “I think the big key for me, it’s more a fight against myself rather than ­– obviously it’s a fight against the best female golfers, but really it comes to me going against myself and me believing in myself, and if I have those doubts, trying to overcome that.”

Something else has been going on in that gym: She has put on muscle.

A month ago, one of Ko’s trainers did a body fat assessment test. Two weeks later, she said, she was 7 pounds heavier, but her body fat percentage had remained the same. Ko said her trainer has been feeding her protein drinks as she walks out of the gym.

“I don’t drink as many as Bryson DeChambeau,” joked Ko with Golf Channel’s Jerry Foltz, “but I think over this time it’s been a good time for me to really think through on what are my big goals coming in this year. We wanted to get more muscle mass, so that was one of our goals.”

LPGA television coverage for Saturday’s third round has been pushed back to 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET. Live streaming begins at 3 p.m.

Thursday’s opening round at the Marathon was the most-watched LPGA Round 1 telecast (regular-season events and majors included) in more than two years. The telecast averaged 200,000 viewers per minute. And that’s during the week of a men’s major.

Ewart Shadoff’s husband, Adam, is a sports anchor/reporter for Fox 35 in Orlando. When asked what it usually takes for her to get mentioned by her husband on the evening news, Ewart Shadoff said she had to be “at the top.”

“I haven’t been mentioned in a while, so we’ll see,” she said, smiling. “We’ll see if I can get that mention at the end of the week.”

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Two-hour phone call with Lorena Ochoa helps Maria Fassi climb into contention at Marathon

Maria Fassi talked to Lorena Ochoa for two hours on Thursday night. Ochoa listened, and then she didn’t mince words.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Maria Fassi talked to Lorena Ochoa for two hours on Thursday night. They’d been texting back and forth for days, and Fassi’s mom suggested they do it the old-fashioned way. Ochoa’s longtime coach, Rafael Alarcon was on the call, too, and started off by asking Fassi how she was thinking and feeling on the golf course.

Ochoa listened, and then she didn’t mince words.

“She’s tough,” said Fassi, smiling. “She’s like ‘I don’t care. You have to reset. I don’t care how good you were as amateur, you’ve got to start all over again.’”

Fassi took everything the 27-time tour winner and World Golf Hall of Famer said to heart. She fired a 66 on Day 2 of the Marathon LPGA Classic and sits in fourth place, four strokes behind leader Lydia Ko.

The former Arkansas star told Ochoa that when she missed a putt, she’d been struggling to trust herself over the next one. Talk positively to yourself, Ochoa told her, really try digging into yourself to see what’s going on.

“I was definitely a lot more … aware of what was going on inside of me than I’ve ever been,” said Fassi, “In a way that helped me just forget about everything else and really focus on myself and my game.”

After waiting 166 days for the LPGA to restart its 2020 season, Fassi opened with a disappointing 79 at the LPGA Drive On Championship and followed it with a 77 to miss the cut.

“I got hit hard in the head last week,” said Fassi.

Tough love from a Mexican icon this week might yield Fassi’s best finish yet.

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France’s Perinne Delacour paying a big price after caddie tested positive for COVID-19

Perrine Delacour withdrew from the Marathon LPGA Classic after her caddie tested positive on Aug. 2 for COVID-19.

SYLVANIA, Ohio – Perrine Delacour withdrew from the Marathon LPGA Classic after her caddie tested positive on Aug. 2 for COVID-19. Delacour, who tested negative, must quarantine for 14 days because she was deemed a close contact. She won’t be tested again for two weeks.

“I asked them if I could do another test in the next few days,” said Delacour. “They said no, you have to wait 14 days.”

Delacour said her caddie, meanwhile, got tested again for COVID-19 on Aug. 4, and this time received a negative result. He tested for a third time on Friday and expects to get the results on Saturday. The caddie’s 10-day quarantine would end on Aug. 12, should his third test come back negative and doctors clear him.

“Both of us don’t have any symptoms,” said Delacour. “We both feel good.”

Delacour will miss the LPGA’s direct charter flight that leaves Sunday night for the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open. She’ll miss the tournament, too. The earliest she could fly out now is Aug. 16, which would put her on the ground on Monday, Aug. 17, for the start of the AIG Women’s Open week at Royal Troon. It will be Delacour’s first Women’s Open. Right now, flying to Scotland on her own costs roughly $1,000 more than the cost of the charter.

Both Delacour and her caddie will each receive $5,000 from the tour to help cover the costs of quarantine and potential lost earnings. Delacour, 26, has competed in four events on the LPGA in 2020. She finished third at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open and tied for 16th at both the ISPS Handa Vic Open and last week’s Drive On LPGA Championship. She currently ranks 10th on the money list with $113,516.

The LPGA had a 166-day break in between events due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“I was playing good golf,” said Delacour, “so I’m losing a lot of money.”

If her caddie’s quarantine can end 10 days after having a positive test, with potentially two subsequent negative tests within that time frame, Delacour doesn’t understand why she can’t keep getting tested at the same time to see if she’s still negative. Why is her quarantine even longer?

“The way they handled the situation drives me a little crazy,” said Dilator. “We all think that (his) was a false-positive.”

LPGA Chief Tour Operations Officer Heather Daly-Donofrio said the tour’s protocols are based on CDC guidance and the advice of a medical director.

“She was deemed a close contact,” said Daly-Donofrio. “Close contact under CDC, it’s a 14-day quarantine due to the incubation period of the virus.”

This marks the LPGA’s second week back since mid-February. A total of 334 tests were administered during pre-travel testing and early-week testing ahead of the Marathon LPGA Classic. On Wednesday, the LPGA announced that in addition to Delacour’s caddie, the caddie of Allie White tested positive and began his 10-day quarantine. White, who tested negative, also withdrew and began a 14-day quarantine.

Delacour, who doesn’t have any sponsors, typically stays with a host family when she’s in town for the Marathon, and they’re letting her stay on through the quarantine. They’ve even cut the backyard short for her so that she can at least practice wedge shots. During quarantine, she’s not allowed to practice at any nearby courses.

“I feel it’s unfair that I’m going to the British after only practicing 80-yard shots,” she said.

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