Akie Iwai wins Portland Classic to join twin sister Chisato as LPGA winner
Akie Iwai started the day at Edgewater Country Club with a two-stroke lead and never faltered to finish with a 24-under par total of 264.
Chisato Iwai was among the golfers trying to apply pressure, charging up the leaderboard with an 8-under par 64, but it was American Gurleen Kaur who finished second after an impressive, bogey-free 7-under par 65 for 268.
Kaur, a former college standout, opened with three straight birdies and had four more in her career-best LPGA round.
Akie Iwai became the 10th first-time LPGA winner this season and the fifth Japanese player to triumph.
She said she had felt pressure to join the flood of Japanese winners, but that she was even more inspired by her sister's triumph at the Riviera Maya Open in Mexico in May.
"(She) really inspired me," said world No. 29, the runner-up this year in Thailand and at the LA Championship. "That's why I did my best this year."
Akie Iwai got off to a steady start, with back-to-back birdies on the fifth and sixth holes and two more at Nos. 11 and 14.
She got up and down for par from off the green at No. 16, then capped her day with another birdie brace, curling in a testing birdie putt at No. 17 before draining an 18-footer at No. 18.
"Today I was able to conquer myself," she said.
Her sister, who had been watching the final holes nervously, was the first to rush the green and start the champagne-spray celebrations.
"Just watching, so nervous," Chisato Iwai said as Akie was coming down the final stretch. "I'm cheering for her."
But first she had been chasing, and hard.
Chisato Iwai started the day seven adrift but followed an early bogey with eagles at Nos. 5 and 7 — with a birdie at No. 6 sandwiched between.
She strung together four straight birdies from the ninth through the 12th holes and rebounded from a bogey at No. 15 with one last birdie at No. 17.
She finished tied for third at 19-under 269 with Sweden's Linn Grant, who rolled in the seventh birdie of her five-under 67 at No. 18.
Australia's Grace Kim, who captured her first major title at the Evian Championship last month, started the day two shots off the lead and carded a two-under 70 that left her in sole possession of fifth place at 270.
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13 hours ago
Japan's Akie Iwai Claims First LPGA Victory at Portland Classic
News from Japan Sports Aug 18, 2025 12:29 (JST) Portland, Oregon, Aug. 17 (Jiji Press)--Japanese golfer Akie Iwai captured her first LPGA tour title on Sunday at the Standard Portland Classic in the U.S. state of Oregon, finishing at 24 under par. At Columbia Edgewater Country Club, a par-72 course, the 23-year-old Japanese took the outright lead Saturday, edging the runner-up by two strokes in the third round. In Sunday's final round, Iwai sealed her maiden LPGA victory with a bogey-free 66 that included six birdies. The title, which followed her twin sister Chisato Iwai's win at the Mexico Riviera Maya Open in May, marked the first time that twin sisters have both won LPGA titles in the Americas. At the Portland Classic, Chisato finished the final round with 64 strokes, coming in third at 19 under. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
Japan Times
13 hours ago
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Akie Iwai wins Portland Classic to join twin sister Chisato as LPGA winner
Akie Iwai fired six birdies in a 6-under par 66 to win the Portland Classic by four strokes and join twin sister Chisato as a first-time LPGA winner in their rookie season on the U.S. tour. Akie Iwai started the day at Edgewater Country Club with a two-stroke lead and never faltered to finish with a 24-under par total of 264. Chisato Iwai was among the golfers trying to apply pressure, charging up the leaderboard with an 8-under par 64, but it was American Gurleen Kaur who finished second after an impressive, bogey-free 7-under par 65 for 268. Kaur, a former college standout, opened with three straight birdies and had four more in her career-best LPGA round. Akie Iwai became the 10th first-time LPGA winner this season and the fifth Japanese player to triumph. She said she had felt pressure to join the flood of Japanese winners, but that she was even more inspired by her sister's triumph at the Riviera Maya Open in Mexico in May. "(She) really inspired me," said world No. 29, the runner-up this year in Thailand and at the LA Championship. "That's why I did my best this year." Akie Iwai got off to a steady start, with back-to-back birdies on the fifth and sixth holes and two more at Nos. 11 and 14. She got up and down for par from off the green at No. 16, then capped her day with another birdie brace, curling in a testing birdie putt at No. 17 before draining an 18-footer at No. 18. "Today I was able to conquer myself," she said. Her sister, who had been watching the final holes nervously, was the first to rush the green and start the champagne-spray celebrations. "Just watching, so nervous," Chisato Iwai said as Akie was coming down the final stretch. "I'm cheering for her." But first she had been chasing, and hard. Chisato Iwai started the day seven adrift but followed an early bogey with eagles at Nos. 5 and 7 — with a birdie at No. 6 sandwiched between. She strung together four straight birdies from the ninth through the 12th holes and rebounded from a bogey at No. 15 with one last birdie at No. 17. She finished tied for third at 19-under 269 with Sweden's Linn Grant, who rolled in the seventh birdie of her five-under 67 at No. 18. Australia's Grace Kim, who captured her first major title at the Evian Championship last month, started the day two shots off the lead and carded a two-under 70 that left her in sole possession of fifth place at 270.
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Akie Iwai Wins Portland Classic to Join Twin Sister Chisato as Rookie LPGA Tour Champion
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