Yuka Sasso, 22, wins her second US Women’s Open title

LANCASTER, Pa. — As she stood on the 18th green at Lancaster Country Club late Sunday, clutching the Harton S. Semple Cup for the second time in her young career, Yuka Sasso paused, looked down and let the wave of emotion register.

“My family,” she said through tears, eventually speaking after a crowd of spectators gathered around the pit clapped and chanted encouragement. “I wouldn’t be here without their support.”

It was fitting, then, that three years after gifting her mother with a US Women’s Open win, Sasso, 22, could give her father a similar gift.

“It feels great that I was able to give back to my father in the same way,” Sasso said.

In 2021, Sasso became the first golfer from the Philippines – her mother’s country of origin – to win the US Women’s Open. Months later, while holding dual Filipino and Japanese citizenship, she decided instead to represent only her father’s native Japan, and has been playing under that country’s banner ever since.

Sasso’s win puts her in position to compete for Japan at the Olympics later this summer. She represented the Philippines at the 2021 Tokyo Games.

Sunday’s win was also Sasso’s first at any tournament since her first win at the US Women’s Open. The long hiatus between Cup performances has left her wondering whether she will ever finish at the top of the event again.

“I definitely had a little doubt whether I could win again,” she said. “That’s what makes it special because after a long wait – I wasn’t expecting to win the US Women’s Open. Every time, and the last time too, I wasn’t expecting it, and this time too, I wasn’t.” I expect that.

“I think that’s why I got a little emotional.”

Saso won $2.4 million of the $12 million purse, the largest in women’s golf and women’s sports at an independent venue.

At 22 years and 347 days old, she became the youngest two-time champion in Open history.

This time, her win was the byproduct of a furious attack on the leaderboard on the final day. She entered at 2 under overall, 3 shots out of the lead.

By the end of the day, Sasso stood alone, shooting a two-under 68 to seal a three-shot victory. On an afternoon that saw much of the top of the field collapse, Sasso’s victory was decisive before the final two groups ran off the track.

When she buried a par putt on No. 18 to clinch the victory, Sasso gave a left-fist pump, hugged caddy Dylan Valquette, and casually walked off the court as several fans loudly chanted, “Yo! Yo! Yo!”

“I’m not sure how the other players played. I wasn’t looking at the scoreboard,” Sasso said. “I wasn’t too comfortable to be able to see the scoreboard. I just tried to focus on my routine and my game.”

With Sasso carding four birdies from behind – which helped nullify a double bogey on the sixth – her rivals lost their grip on the lead.

First, it was Wichani Michai. Meechai, the co-leader who entered Sunday at 5 under, was flat early, with bogeys on the first two holes and a double bogey on the par-3 sixth. Meechai’s shot on No. 6 approached the pin hard and initially looked like a potential birdie opportunity. But instead of coming to rest, the ball slid off one of the course’s unforgiving greens and landed in a water hazard along the left side.

“It’s the US Open. The pins were very difficult,” Michai said. “Sometimes you can play bad golf in one day, but I’m proud of myself that I can handle this week well.”

Meechai finished tied for sixth place. In three previous attempts at the Open, she had never finished better than 30th.

While Meechai was falling off the lead, her fellow co-leaders who had also entered the day were unable to keep up. Minjee Lee had a fantastic back nine, putting up a pair of bogeys with double bogeys on Nos. 12 and 14. She finished tied for ninth place.

American Andrea Lee, 25, had a pair of costly bogeys on the final two holes to tie for the championship and tie for third.

“I definitely learned a lot this week about myself,” said Lee, who is from Southern California. “I belong here, and I feel like I’m good enough to win and compete for major championships. I just need to do better.”

Another American, Allie Ewing, 31, had a best score on Sunday, a 66. After opening the ninth round 4 shots off the lead, Ewing finished just 4 shots back.

“For any golfer, we want to peak in the majors,” Ewing said. “Starting the week with a 4-point lead and then gradually playing the golf course better and better, hitting more shots, it feels really good.

“This was where I made my first professional start at the US Open, so those are really great memories for Lancaster now.”

Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.