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Japan Forward
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Japan Forward
Akie Iwai Finishes 2nd at the LA Championship
For the second time in the 2025 LPGA Tour season, Akie Iwai earned a runner-up finish on Sunday, April 20. After shooting an 8-under 64 on Saturday, Iwai was tied for the JM Eagle LA Championship lead heading into the final round at El Caballero Country Club in Los Angeles. A day later, the 22-year-old tour rookie carded a 3-under 69. In the fourth round, the Saitama Prefecture native had five birdies and two bogeys to finish at 20-under 268. Sweden's Ingrid Lindblad beat Iwai by one stroke, completing the tourney at 21-under 267 for her first LPGA Tour victory in her third start. Iwai had a chance to force a sudden-death playoff with Lindblad, but she bogeyed the par-4 18th hole. "I'm very frustrated," Iwai said, according to Kyodo News. "I was so nervous on the last putt on the 18th and couldn't make it. It was a waste. I have a chance to bounce back next week, so I'll try to channel my frustration then." Japan's Miyuu Yamashita finished in a three-way tie for third at 19-under 269 along with Germany's Esther Henseleit and Lauren Coughlin of the United States. Also for Japan, Nasa Hataoka, who had the best performance of the final round Sunday (9-under 63), earned a top-10 finish, placing sixth overall at 18-under 270. Akie Iwai has a pair of runner-up finishes in four LPGA Tour events in 2025. (KYODO) Akie Iwai Demonstrates Talent on the LPGA Tour In four starts on the LPGA Tour in 2025, Iwai has made the cut three times. She placed second at the Honda LPGA Thailand on February 23, carding a 27-under 261. Iwai finished one stroke behind winner Angel Yin. In between her strong performance in Thailand and the LA Championship, Iwai tied for 44th at the Ford Championship in Chandler, Arizona, on March 30. Up next: the Chevron Championship (April 24-27) in The Woodlands, Texas. Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani leads off from first base during the eighth inning against the Texas Rangers on April 20 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. (Jerome Miron/IMAGN IMAGES/via REUTERS) Baseball New Father Ohtani Returns to the Dodgers Lineup Playing in his first game after the birth of his daughter, Shohei Ohtani was hitless in three at-bats and walked once on Sunday, April 20 in Arlington, Texas. The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Texas Rangers 1-0. Ohtani missed the first two games of the three-game series while remaining in California to be with his wife Mamiko for the birth of their first child. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts correctly stated the length of time players are permitted to spend on the paternity list in his remarks about Ohtani on Sunday. "I think in paternity, you get three days," Roberts said, according to "But for him to just make sure the baby was healthy and to get back here, and to be a part of this, certainly shows his ability to balance life and work. Good to have him back, and most importantly, I'm happy [he] and Mamiko have a healthy baby girl." The United States figure skating squad poses for photos after winning the 2025 ISU World Team Trophy on April 19 at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium. (KYODO) Figure Skating US Wins World Team Trophy, Japan Finishes 2nd First-place finishes in the free skate by world champions Ilia Malinin and Alysa Liu in the men's and women's singles events helped the United States clinch the overall title in the World Team Trophy on Saturday, April 19. Team USA finished with 126 points, followed by Japan (110 and Italy (86) in the six-nation biennial event at Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium. France, Canada and Georgia placed fourth, fifth and sixth. Malinin and American teammate Jason Brown were 1-2 in the men's free skate with 183.88 and 179.33 points, respectively. Italy's Daniel Grassl took third (172.45), followed by Shun Sato (169.62) and Yuma Kagiyama (168.93) in fourth and fifth. In the women's free skate, Liu topped the scoring chart with 150.97 points, followed by fellow American Amber Glenn (148.93). Three-time world champion Kaori Sakamoto was third (145.00). The World Team Trophy awards points to teams based on skaters' results after both the short program and free skate. Riku Miura (left) and Ryuichi Kihara compete in the pairs free skate on April 19 in Tokyo. (KYODO) In the pairs competition, Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara, who claimed their second world title in Boston on March 27, won the short program and the free skate. Advertisement Did You Know? New York Mets right-hander Kodai Senga leads the National League in ERA (0.79) heading into the week of April 21-27. In his third MLB season, Senga is 3-1. He's allowed zero runs in each of his last three starts. RELATED: Author: Ed Odeven Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
USA Today
22-03-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Sophia Popov asked LPGA to clarify her status before playing, still had points stripped
Sophia Popov asked LPGA to clarify her status before playing, still had points stripped Sophia Popov reached out to the LPGA in January to clarify her status after coming back from a medical and maternity leave. She received confirmation from the tour that her priority number of 57th was correct and she was good to go. "Trusting that, I left my 20-month-old at home for two weeks to compete halfway across the world," Popov told Golfweek in a text on Saturday. "Two days ago I was notified about the administrative error and stripped of all my CME points earned this year." The LPGA released a memo to players on Friday evening informing them of an error that resulted in Popov being placed in the wrong spot on the original 2025 Priority List. As a result, the major champion competed in three tournaments for which she was not otherwise qualified: Founders Cup, Honda LPGA Thailand and HSBC Women's World Championship. To correct the error, the memo, written by Chief Tour Business and Operations Officer Ricki Lasky, said the member's CME points, earnings and Aon Risk Reward Challenge points will be removed from official standings. "Even though I believe the right decisions were made," said Popov, "it is very frustrating that this error occurred, after I specifically reached out to clarify my status situation. It is very unfortunate for me and the girls that didn't get into these events and missed out on guaranteed points in Asia." The HSBC and Thailand events are limited fields and don't have a cut. Popov earned a paycheck in all three starts as well as CME points, which determines a player's status for the season. Popov said her priority number dropped from Category 1 (full card, 57th) to Category 19, which is Nos. 126 to 150 on the list. The German competed in 17 events in 2024 and finished 136th on the CME points list. She went to the final stage of LPGA Q-School in December and finished T-58th, which means she failed to improve her status. Because Popov won the 2020 AIG Women's British Open, she's exempt into all the majors this year. She can't still play out of the winner's category, however, because she wasn't a tour member at the time she won at Royal Troon. That rule has since been changed to allow non-members who win majors a five-year exemption on tour. The LPGA did not release the names of any of the players involved, but according to the Final Entry Lists for each of the events in question, the three players listed as the first alternate for each field include Saki Baba (Founders Cup), Hira Naveed (Thailand LPGA) and Peiyun Chien (HSBC). Baba, the 2022 U.S. Women's Amateur champion, posted a note on Instagram Saturday that said, "In golf, you have to accept bad luck and mistakes as part of the game. But I believe that opportunities will always come around again." A rookie on the LPGA, Baba has reed it up once so far this season in China at the Blue Bay LPGA, where she took a share of 17th. An LPGA official said the error was discovered during the review of another member's maternity leave. "We will share more details as we work internally to best remedy the situation for the three players who were inadvertently impacted and left out of these tournament fields," said Lasky. "We apologize to those that have been directly affected and sincerely regret the error."
USA Today
22-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
LPGA error puts wrong player in three events, keeping three out. Who was impacted?
LPGA error puts wrong player in three events, keeping three out. Who was impacted? The LPGA released a memo to players on Friday evening that was obtained by Golfweek, informing them of an administrative error that resulted in a member being placed in the wrong spot on the original 2025 Priority List. As a result, the member competed in three tournaments for which she was not otherwise qualified: Founders Cup, Honda LPGA Thailand and HSBC Women's World Championship. To correct the error, the memo, written by Chief Tour Business and Operations Officer Ricki Lasky, said the member's CME points, earnings and Aon Risk Reward Challenge points will be removed from official standings. The member has also been moved to the correct position on the Priority List, which determines how fields are filled. The domino effect of such an error means, of course, that the first alternate for each of these events missed out on an opportunity she had rightly earned. "We will share more details as we work internally to best remedy the situation for the three players who were inadvertently impacted and left out of these tournament fields," said Lasky. "We apologize to those that have been directly affected and sincerely regret the error." The LPGA did not release the names of the players involved, but according to the Final Entry Lists for each of the events in question, the three players listed as the first alternate for each field include Saki Baba (Founders Cup), Hira Naveed (Thailand LPGA) and Peiyun Chien (HSBC). Sophia Popov confirmed to Golfweek that she was the player who was improperly placed on the Priority List. Popov was listed as 57th on the LPGA Priority List to start the season with a double asterisk by her name for maternity leave. Popov, however, competed in 17 events in 2024 and finished 136th on the CME points list. She went to the final stage of LPGA Q-School in December and finished T-58th, which means she failed to improve her status. A player is entitled to the equivalent of one full season of events upon returning from maternity leave. While the LPGA wouldn't confirm any of the players involved, the tour did say in a statement to Golfweek that the error was related to a calculation of return to play following a combined medical and maternity leave absence. Popov had taken a medical leave in 2022 to heal her right shoulder and, not long after, found out she was pregnant. The error was discovered during the review of another member's maternity leave. The HSBC and Thailand events are limited and don't have a cut. Popov earned a paycheck in all three starts as well as CME points. The tour noted that it is "immediately implementing additional layers of audit and review."
USA Today
28-02-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
This recent LPGA winner forced into another last-minute caddie switch at HSBC
This recent LPGA winner forced into another last-minute caddie switch at HSBC It was another last-minute caddie switch for American Angel Yin. For a second week in a row, Yin's regular caddie, Michelle Simpson, fell ill, only this time it was midway through the first round of the HSBC Women's World Championship. Yin called on a friend who'd just flown in from Hawaii, to sub in for the rest of the round. She then reached out to the man who helped her out last week in Thailand, where she won her second career LPGA title. Sakchai "Tom" Sirimaya filled in at the last minute ahead of the first round at the Honda LPGA Thailand. This time, he made the two-hour flight over to Singapore late Thursday night to lend a hand. "He arrived at midnight and he has more energy than me," said Yin. "It's honestly really, really cool." Sirimaya played professionally on the All Thailand Golf Tour and Thailand PGA Tour and currently caddies for Thaworn Wiratchant on the PGA Senior Tour Japan. "Everybody keeps calling him a local caddie but he's actually a professional caddie," said Yin. "Caddies on the Asian Tour and the senior Japanese Tour. That's why he has so much experience and that's why he helped me win." Yin followed an opening 76 with a 68, vaulting up the leaderboard into a share of 23rd. She trails leader A Lim Kim by seven strokes.
NBC Sports
27-02-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
A Lim Kim leads LPGA tournament in Singapore by a stroke over Charley Hull after the first round
The Golf Today crew reacts to A-lim Kim using AimPoint on a very short putt at the Honda LPGA Thailand and explain why changes must be made, despite Kim's usage not being the worst offense. SINGAPORE — A Lim Kim tamed swirling winds to shoot a 4-under 68 and take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the HSBC Women's World Championship on Thursday. Kim had five birdies but bogeyed the par-5 16th in tough windy conditions on the Tanjong course at Sentosa Golf Club. Charley Hull of England was in second place after a bogey-free 69, followed by four players tied for third with 70s, including China's Ruoning Yin and Australia's Minjee Lee. World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand and No. 3 Lydia Ko of New Zealand, the two highest-ranked players in the field, each shot 71. 'Today a lot of winds, and that's very hard for me, but everybody has the same situation,' Kim said. 'Tomorrow, I'm going to work harder.' Jin Young Ko, who will try to become the first three-time winner of the Singapore event, opened with a 73 and Brooke Henderson shot 74. Defending champion Hannah Green shot 75. Angel Yin, who won the LPGA Thailand event last week, had a 76. The Singapore field features nine of the top 10 players in the world ranking - and 13 of the top 15 - minus only top-ranked Nelly Korda and Rose Zhang. The final event of the LPGA's three-tournament early Asian Swing will be played next week at Hainan Island, China.
