Latest news with #MaoSaigo
Arab News
2 days ago
- Sport
- Arab News
Amy Yang looks to repeat at Women's PGA in wide-open field
FRISCO, Texas: The LPGA has a new commissioner on the way, a new course to play and no shortage of parity as it marks the halfway point of the season at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, which begins Thursday in Frisco, Texas. It's an important time on the women's golf calendar for more reasons than one. Three of the next five events are major championships, and no one is running away with the season-long points competition, the Race to the CME Globe. Through 15 tournaments in 2025, 15 different players have claimed a title, none of them named Nelly Korda. The first two majors were won by first-timers with scant previous experience in the United States — Japan's Mao Saigo at the Chevron Championship, followed by Sweden's Maja Stark at the US Women's Open. Korda is World No. 1 and entered the week as the slight betting favorite to win what would be her third major. However, she revealed that she suffered a neck spasm on Monday from hitting a practice shot out of the rough. It was concerning, given she missed time last fall with a neck injury. 'But I have a great physio who takes care of me,' Korda went on to say. 'Trying to work through it, but I'll be ready by Thursday.' For Korda, it was far from a friendly welcome to PGA Frisco, the new resort that also serves as the PGA of America's headquarters. The Fields Ranch East course will host the Women's PGA again in 2031 as well as the men's PGA Championship in 2027 and 2034. This week, the course will be a par-72, 6,604-yard setup and serve as a test run for holding major championship golf in the Texas summer heat. 'To my knowledge, I think Gil Hanse and the team, they designed this course to host championships,' Lydia Ko of New Zealand said. 'It's designed with a purpose, and obviously the more frequently you go to these kind of sites, you kind of get more familiar with it.' Ko played a practice round alongside Craig Kessler, who will take over as commissioner of the LPGA next month. Kessler was previously COO of the PGA of America and will be tasked with increasing the LPGA's visibility and financial solvency. 'I'm sure he's busy with still wrapping things up with the PGA of America and transitioning into our role as well, but it's exciting,' Ko said. 'I think it's a great time for golf. It's great to have somebody like him that's enthusiastic and really wants to see where — like how far we can go.' Korean veteran Amy Yang is the defending champion following a three-stroke victory in 2024. 'I came very close to many major championships and never won before, so on Saturday night I was very nervous and I was questioning myself, 'Can I do it this time?'' Yang recalled. 'But I distracted myself calling my friends and family and just told myself, 'You know, go out tomorrow and just every hole, every shot, just embrace everything and see what's going to happen.' 'That experience taught me that I can do it. I can still do it.' The entire top 25 in the Rolex Rankings are in the field. World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand has one victory this season, but the promising 22-year-old has yet to win a major. 'Every major I just want to make the cut, to be honest,' Thitikul said. 'It would be really great to win it, and definitely I can tell that it would be like, everyone dreams to win a major. To me, what I have now under my belt, I'm pretty happy with all I've achieved.'
NBC Sports
4 days ago
- Sport
- NBC Sports
KPMG Women's PGA Championship 2025: How to watch, streams, field and prize money
The KPMG Women's PGA Championship is the LPGA's third major of the season. Here's some need-to-know information: When and where is the KPMG Women's PGA Championship? June 19-22 at Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco (6,604 yards, par 72) in Frisco, Texas. How to watch the KPMG Women's PGA Championship (All times EDT; stream links added when available) Thursday, June 19 11AM-3PM: Golf Channel/NBC Sports App 6-8PM: Golf Channel/NBC Sports App Friday, June 20 Saturday, June 21 11AM-1:30PM: Peacock 1:30-6PM: NBC/Peacock Sunday, June 22 11AM-3PM: Peacock This week's TV times: PGA Tour's Travelers Championship and more Who is in the field at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship? There are 156 players in the field, including 12 past champions and the year's first two major winners: Mao Saigo (Chevron) and Maja Stark (U.S. Women's Open). There are also eight club professionals who qualified to compete. Click here for the updated field, per the LPGA Tour. What is the KPMG Women's PGA Championship purse and prize money? The purse is $10.4 million with $1.56 million going to the winner. Golf Channel Staff, What is the cut at the KPMG Women's PGA Championship? There is a cut to the low 70 players and ties following 36 holes. Who won the 2024 KPMG Women's PGA Championship? Amy Yang captured her long-awaited first major title in dominant fashion at Sahalee, finishing at 7 under, three clear of the field. It was the then 34-year-old's 75th major start and her sixth career LPGA Tour victory.
Kyodo News
08-06-2025
- Business
- Kyodo News
Kyodo News Digest: June 8, 2025
KYODO NEWS - 4 hours ago - 15:00 | All, Japan, World The following is the latest list of selected news summaries by Kyodo News. ---------- Japan aims to enlist 10 mil. in rural support registry TOKYO - The government plans to launch a new registration system to encourage people to keep strong connections with rural areas hit by depopulation, aiming to sign up more than 10 million users over the next decade. The initiative is a hallmark of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's efforts to revitalize regional areas, as Japan has been unsuccessful in reversing a long-term trend of overconcentration of people in Tokyo and other major cities. ---------- Japan telecom giant NTT Docomo to end own emoji after 26 yrs TOKYO - Japanese telecom giant NTT Docomo Inc. will retire its set of original emoji whose release 26 years ago helped shape the visual language of today's digital communications. The carrier's Android smartphones and feature phones marketed from June will not come with the Docomo emoji set. Announcing the decision in late May, the firm said they had "fulfilled their role" while noting that Google's emoji had become more common globally. ---------- Baseball: Yamamoto throws 6 shutout frames, but Dodgers fall to Cards ST. LOUIS, Missouri - Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw six scoreless innings, but the Los Angeles Dodgers offense was kept quiet in a 2-1 walk-off loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday. Pursuing his seventh win of the season, the Japanese right-hander left the mound with the game still scoreless after fanning nine while scattering four hits and two walks. ---------- Golf: Mao Saigo sinks rare albatross, moves up to 2nd at LPGA Classic GALLOWAY, New Jersey - Japanese golfer Mao Saigo scored a rare albatross Saturday on her way to a 6-under-par 65 that will see her tee off the final round of the ShopRite LPGA Classic trailing leader Lee Il Hee of South Korea by one stroke. The 23-year-old Saigo, a major winner at April's Chevron Championship, added to her highlight reel when she holed out with her second shot from 214 yards on the par-5 3rd hole at Seaview's Bay Course. ---------- Japan, EU eye launch of "competitive alliance" scheme to boost trade BRUSSELS - Japan and the European Union are preparing to launch an "alliance" framework to beef up their companies' competitiveness by promoting trade and economic security cooperation, diplomatic sources said Saturday, facing concerns over U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs and Chinese trade practices. The creation of the "Japan-EU Competitiveness Alliance" is expected to be announced at a regular summit meeting being arranged for July, when Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is likely to host European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, they said. ---------- Japan opposition lawmaker says rice reserves mostly go to chickens SAGA, Japan - A lawmaker of Japan's main opposition party said Saturday that government rice reserves recently put on sale are mostly consumed by chickens, doubling down on remarks that could be perceived as insensitive to people who have snapped up the old rice due to cheaper prices. Kazuhiro Haraguchi of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan made the remarks at a gathering in southwestern Japan to shore up support ahead of the upper house election, even after Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of another opposition party, apologized a week ago for likening the stockpiles to "animal feed." ---------- Japan, U.S. yet to find common ground on tariffs but want quick deal WASHINGTON - Japan and the United States have "yet to find common ground" on tariff issues, Tokyo's top negotiator said Friday, indicating that there remain many differences between the sides, but they still aim to clinch a win-win deal in mid-June. After holding talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington, Ryosei Akazawa told reporters that he believes "further progress" was made. ---------- Over half of rice producing firms feel store rice prices "too high" TOKYO - Over half of large-scale rice producers feel that store prices for rice are "too high," a recent survey conducted by an association of agricultural corporations showed, indicating that many of them share concerns with consumers about the elevated cost of the staple food in Japan. As households increasingly complain about rice prices that have doubled over the past year, more than 40 percent of respondents worried that consumers may start shunning the product. Video: Parade at Hyakumangoku Festival in Ishikawa Prefecture
The Mainichi
08-06-2025
- Sport
- The Mainichi
Saigo sinks rare albatross, moves up to 2nd at LPGA Classic
GALLOWAY, New Jersey (Kyodo) -- Japanese golfer Mao Saigo scored a rare albatross Saturday on her way to a 6-under-par 65 that will see her tee off the final round of the ShopRite LPGA Classic trailing leader Lee Il Hee of South Korea by one stroke. The 23-year-old Saigo, a major winner at April's Chevron Championship, added to her highlight reel when she holed out with her second shot from 214 yards on the par-5 3rd hole at Seaview's Bay Course. She also had five birdies and a pair of bogeys to finish the second round of the 54-hole tournament tied for second at 10 under with compatriot Ayaka Furue, as well as Americans Jennifer Kupcho and Elizabeth Szokol. "I wasn't that accurate with my irons and off the tee, but I'm happy with my score," said Saigo, who already has four top-10 finishes in her brief LPGA career. "I didn't think the albatross was going in." Furue had five birdies in a bogey-free round of 66, while Lee followed her opening 63 with a 68. Japan's Miyu Yamashita and Chisato Iwai, who secured her first LPGA win at last month's Mexico Riviera Maya Open, both shot 66 to join four others tied for sixth at 8 under.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Lee seizes solo lead at LPGA Shoprite Classic
South Korean Lee Il-hee hits a tee shot on the way to the lead at the LPGA Shoprite Classic in New Jersey (Isaiah Vazquez) South Korea's Lee Il-hee bounced back from a late double bogey with her fifth birdie of the day at her final hole to seize a one-shot lead going into the final round of the LPGA Shoprite Classic in New Jersey on Saturday. Lee, who shared the overnight lead with Elizabeth Szokol, teed off on 10 at the Seaview Hotel & Country Club and grabbed four birdies in her first nine holes. Advertisement After her double bogey at the eighth she finished with a final birdie for an 11-under par total of 131 and a one-stroke edge over Japan's Mao Saigo and Ayaka Furue and Americans Jennifer Kupcho and Szokol. Lee, a 36-year-old whose career has been hampered by multiple injuries, had opened the 54-hole event with an impressive 63. "Today was totally different day, and I knew it's going to be complete different day so I didn't have any expectations," she said. "I was just playing golf, having fun out there. Made some birdies on the first nine -- it was fun." Saigo, who won her first major title at the Chevron Championship in April, carded a 67 highlighted by an albatross at the par-five third hole, where she holed out from 214 yards out with a seven-wood. Advertisement "First time," said Saigo, who couldn't see the ball go in but said she knew it had by the reaction of the crowd around the green. Furue claimed her share of second with a bogey-free 66 while Kupcho posted the low round of the day with seven birdies in her seven-under 64, capped by a birdie-birdie finish at eight and nine. Szokol also overcame a double bogey, carding four birdies in a 69 that she classed as "pretty good" in the wake of Friday's 63. "Definitely hard to beat yesterday's," Szokol said. "Still, really solid day, hit some great golf shots and made some really good putts early on to save par. Finished on a birdie so going off on a good note for tomorrow." bb/sev
