Saso fights back with 70, lays eight adrift

MANILA, Philippines — In danger of missing the weekend play of the Japan Women’s Open, Yuka Saso did what she does best, coming through with an explosive windup to shoot a 70 and safely advance in the LPGA of Japan Tour’s second major championship in Miyakawa City in Fukuoka Prefecture yesterday.

Though she remained too far behind (8 strokes) new leader and arch rival Sakura Koiwai, her late birdie-eagle burst at the frontside of The Classic Golf Club spiked a 33-37 card that lifted her from joint 47th to a share of 18th with the top 60-plus ties moving to the last 36 holes of the Y112.5 million championship.

Koiwai upstaged the Fil-Japanese Player of the Year frontrunner for the second straight day as the Golf5 Ladies champion sustained a brilliant opening 66 with a three-under 69 to wrest a three-stroke lead over Erika Hara at nine-under 135.

The 22-year-old Koiwai could’ve gone 5-up but a double bogey on the par-3, 195-yard No. 7 on a rare four-putt miscue enabled a slew of bidders to stay within striking distance. Hara birdied the last two holes for a 70 and a 139 while erstwhile leader Na-Ri Lee limped with a 74 after a 64 to tumble to joint third at 140 with Miki Sakai, who fired a 69.

After a backside 35, Koiwai birdied four of the first six holes to pull away from Saso then hacked an 8-iron to eight meters to the upper right side of the pin on No. 7. But wary of putting past the cup, she came too short of her first downhill stroke. The next went past the cup and she needed two more putts to hole out with a 5.

“I was shocked. I couldn’t hit it properly,” rued Koiwai, who nevertheless succeeded in posting a big cushion heading to the pivotal third round.

Awesome with a lead-grabbing, bogey-free eight-under card in morning play Thursday, a record in the longest course (6761 yards) in JLPGA Tour history, Lee fared miserably in a late start, fumbling with six bogeys against two birdies for that 74.

Eri Okiyama, runner-up to last year’s champ and LPGA Tour stalwart and world No. 8 Nasa Hataoka, charged back with a 68 to jump to a share of fifth at 141 with Mizutsuki Oide, Lala Anai and Momoko Ueda. , who turned in a 70, 71 and 73, respectively.

After a so-so two-birdie, three-bogey 73 in a late first round stint, Saso had hoped for a big bounce-back with a switch in tee-time. But the NEC Karuizawa and Nitori Ladies titlist kept grappling with her balky putter, even dropping a stroke on the par-5 15th for a birdie-less backside 37.

But after a run of six pars at the front, Saso birdied the par-3 No. 7 to stave off elimination then eagled the par-5 next before holing out with a par for that 33.

“It’s a major tournament so I don’t think it’s easy to get a score,” said Saso, who assembled 143, the same output put in by Ayaka Furue (70), Chie Arimura (72) and Ayaka Watanabe (69), among others.

But flightmate Koiwai continued to make it look as one as the Hokkaido native shook off a bogey miscue on No. 11 with birdies on Nos. 12 and 16 before adding four more on Nos. 1, 3, 4 and 6 to seize control.

Over in Florida, Dottie Ardina carded a three-under 69 to trail Aussie Robyn Choi by six at the start of the Symetra Classic at the LPGA International Jones course in Daytona Beach Friday.

The Canlubang pro checked a streak of shaky starts in both the LPGA and Symetra Tours with three birdies in the first 12 holes then regained a lost stroke on No. 16 with another birdie on the 18th to complete a 35-34 round for a share of 19th with seven others in the 72-hole tournament serving as tune-up for next week’s LPGA third major, the Women’s PGA Championship in Pennsylvania.

US-based Clariss Guce likewise rode on a big start of three birdies in the first seven holes to shoot a 70 for joint 27th.

Choi tamed the par-72 layout with a stirring nine-birdie feat, highlighted by three straight from No. 12 as she wrested a one-shot lead over Taiwanese Peiyun Chien and three strokes ahead of American August Kim, Ana Belac of Slovenia and Italian Roberta Liti.

Ardina missed just one fairway and failed to reach regulation four times but finished with 29 putts and preserved her 69 with a par rescued from the bunker.