Saso settles for third, loses grip of No. 1 in individual award race

YUKA SASO couldn’t sustain her fiery form on Sunday and settled for joint third in the Daio Paper Elleair Ladies Open—in the process losing her grip of the Player of the Year.

An in-form Ayaka Furue picked up from where she left off at the Itoen Ladies which she ruled last week as the 20-year- old rookie from Hyogo sailed to a three-stroke victory over Korean Lee Min-young despite a last-hole bogey for a 69 and a 15-under 269 total.

Lee snared runner-up honors with 272 after carding one of the final day’s best 66s at the Elleair Golf Club Matsuyama.

Saso, only two down after 54 holes, hobbled with a three-putt miscue on the first hole and never recovered. She hit two birdies but made another bogey and dropped two strokes on the par- 4 No. 7 to finish with a 73 for joint third at 275 with Kikuchi Erika, who submitted a 70.

With Saso fumbling, Furue pulled away by six after 10 holes before Lee made a late charge in a flight ahead and closed out with three birdies in the last six holes to secure second place.

“She [Furue] is amazing and tough,” Saso said of her fellow rookie.

The victory netted Furue Y18 million. Had Saso won, she would have become the first player to reach the Y100-million mark in just 13 tournaments.

Furue gained 300 ranking points and dislodged Saso from the top of the Player of the Year derby with 1,131.78 points.

The International Container Terminal Services Inc.-backed Saso slipped to second with 1,048.85 points but her Y6.5 million in earnings kept her in the money race lead with a total of Y89,253,170. Furue jumped to second place with Y73,102,992.

That makes the last Japan Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour event, the Tour Championship Ricoh Cup starting Thursday, crucial in the chase for the coveted crown.

The Japan Tour’s last major will be played at the Miyazaki Country Club in Miyazaki Prefecture in Kyushu Island.

After a bogey-free 64 to take charge Saturday, Furue kept her amazing run of form into the first nine holes of the final round, posting a two-under 33 on birdies on Nos. 2, 6 and 9 against a bogey on the seventh then birdied the 10th for good measure.

Saso, on the other hand, struggled from that ego- deflating bogey on the opening hole where after a solid drive into the middle of the fairway, approached too way short of the cup then putted short of 10 feet which she muffed when the ball veered to the right of the cup.

She birdied the sixth but yielded two strokes on the par- 4 seventh to kiss her bid goodbye.