One of the women’s major professional golf tournaments, the Japan Women’s Open 2013 (the 46th Japan Women’s Open Golf Championship), opens tomorrow, October 3 (through the 6th).
The venue, Sagamihara Golf Club (GC) East Course (Sagamihara, Kanagawa), opened the inward nine in 1955 and the outward in 1957 to Kodera Yuji’s design. “A long course, large greens” is the design idea; distance and accuracy of shot will both be asked for.
In good form this season, domestic money-list leader Morita Rikako, second Yokomine Sakura, third Yoshida Yumiko, fourth Saeki Mitsuki, fifth newcomer Higa Mamiko, plus U.S.-tour players Miyazato Ai and Miyazato Mika, and the Korean contingent, should make a hot fight.
Sagamihara GC is a famous club whose first chairman was Takaishi Shingoro, Mainichi chairman and chief editorial writer, an IOC member who helped bring the previous Tokyo Olympics (1964). It has hosted the men’s Japan Open three times and is familiar on tour, but this is the first Japan Women’s Open and advance interest is high. Since summer, even weekday
bookings on the East Course have been hard to get, they say.
Palaceside Building holds a tenant friendship golf meeting at Sagamihara GC every year; this year it was last weekend. A large Women’s Open sign stood at the club entrance (photo above), with guidance in and around the clubhouse, and a “five days to go” board caught the eye = photo right.
This year’s Women’s Open is on a famous course tied to the Mainichi and Palaceside Building. I look forward to the players’ work.