By: Max Bechtoldt
The week began with dominance from Japan’s Ayaka Furue, and fittingly, that is also how it ended, with a one-stroke victory over Stephanie Kyriacou.
It wasn’t easy for Furue today, as she had to navigate a tight leaderboard. In the last three holes of the event, four different players held the lead or a share of the lead.
Furue’s finish was the stuff of legends. After a -2 front nine, her game stalled with a bogey on 12 surrounded by pars. But, Furue had birdies on 14, 15 and 16 to get herself back in the mix.
The score in the clubhouse was set by major champion Patty Tavatanakit, who had the round of the day at -8. It could have been a lot better for Patty T also, as she missed makable birdie putts on 15, 16 and 17. She came through on the last, using her power to put an eight iron in her hand going for a par 5 in two. She converted this time to get to 17 for the tournament.
The round three leader, Stephanie Kyriacou, also played fantastic golf, with birdies on 15, 16 and 18, but her round will be defined by one shot. After a wayward drive and a punch out, Kyriacou had a short pitch left. She chunked it though, leading to a bogey. She lost by just one.
Lauren Coughlin was ahead for much of the round after a four under front nine, but an unlucky break on 16 cost her mightily. Coughlin intended to use the heavy sloped green on the par three, but the ball stayed in place leaving a long, incredibly fast putt. Coughlin three putted it for bogey, before missing a short one on 17 for bogey.
That brings us back to Furue. Despite being far from the longest hitter in the field, she still had iron in her hand on the par 5 18. She hit a beautiful shot and an even better putt to clinch the second women’s major for Japan this year.
With the win Furue, who has been terrific this season, goes to No. 2 in the CME Standings. This is her second win on tour, after the 2022 Scottish Open. Unfortunately for her, she missed the Olympics by one spot in a tight race, but this should be a solid consolation prize.
