Japanese teen runs off with title
Nasa Hataoka didn’t have the star power in her final grouping at the NW Arkansas Championship.
What the Japanese teenager did have by the time she was finished was her first victory on the LPGA Tour in Rogers, Ark.
Hataoka shot an 8-underpar 63 to run away with the tournament at Pinnacle Country Club yesterday. The 19-year-old did so in recordbreaking fashion, finishing with a tournament-best 21-under 192 total — 3 shots better than the mark set last year by So Yeon Ryu.
Tied at 13 under with ninth-ranked Minjee Lee entering the day, Hataoka was paired with Lee and third-ranked Lexi Thompson yesterday. She jumped to the early lead and never let up while matching the lowest round of the week.
Austin Ernst was second after a 65. Lee and Thompson topped the group at 13 under.
They were all left looking up at the 5-foot-2 Hataoka, who entered the week ranked 30th.
“I (have) played with Lexi and all the big-name players,” Hataoka said. “Playing with them was really big for me, and winning this tournament was so huge for me.”
Hataoka won twice late last year on the Japan LPGA and has finished in the top 10 in five of her last six LPGA Tour stars, including a playoff loss last month in the Kingsmill Championship. This year has been a far change from last year when she made only eight of 19 cuts on the LPGA Tour, including a missed cut in Arkansas.
Much of her success has come in the last three months after she won the tour’s qualifying tournament in December to earn her full tour card. Hataoka missed the cut in two of her first three tournaments this year, but she’s now earned prize money in 10 straight events — including $300,000 yesterday . . . .
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In Pulheim, Germany, England’s Matt Wallace shot a 7-under 65 to hold off Thorbjorn Olesen’s record-breaking charge in the BMW International Open.
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