Defending champion Suzann Pettersen was ousted by England’s Jodi Ewart in the first round of the LPGA Match Play Championship on Thursday, while World No. 1 Yani Tseng of Taiwan barely advanced.
Ewart, ranked 62nd, upset the third-ranked Norwegian 3-and-1. Fourth-ranked Ai Miyazato of Japan, another top seed in her quarter of the 64-woman field, also made a first-match exit, losing 2-up to Colombian Mariajo Uribe.
Tseng, who has already won three times this year, struggled to defeat South Korea’s Jang Jeong 1-up, while World No. 2 Choi Na-yeon of South Korea outlasted compatriot Grace Park 2-up.
Pettersen won the first two holes with a par followed by a birdie and even after Ewart answered with birdies to win the fourth and fifth holes, she birdied the sixth to reclaim a 1-up lead.
However, Ewart took command on the back nine, winning the 11th when Pettersen bogeyed the hole and taking the par-three 12th and par-four 13th with birdies.
Pettersen answered with a par to take the par-four 14th, but Ewart birdied the par-three 16th and closed out the match with a birdie at the par-four 17th.
Tseng won four of the first six holes, three of them with pars, to leap into the early lead over 64th-ranked Jang, but the last qualifier in the field began the back nine with a par and birdie to halve her deficit to 2-down.
Tseng won the par-three 12th with a par, but Jang birdied the next three holes to square the match on the 16th tee. Tseng won the 16th with a par, then matched Jang’s pars on the final two holes to secure the victory.
Uribe birdied the 14th, 15th and 16th holes to take a 1-up edge on Miyazato and won the par-five 18th with a birdie to eliminate the Asian star.
South Korea’s Amy Yang beat Amy Hung of Taiwan 3-and-2, while Catriona Matthew knocked out Taiwan’s Candie Kung 3-and-1.
Also among those losing in the first round was Michelle Wie, who fell 3-and-2 to fellow American Mina Harigae.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two
RSS