Yuka Saso limped home with a three-over 75 and finished in joint sixth in the JLPGA Tour Championship Ricoh Cup won by Erika Hara in runaway fashion Sunday at the Miyazaki Country Club in Miyazaki Prefecture
The 19-year-old Fil-Japanese kissed her comeback bid goodbye with three straight bogeys from No. 5 on errant shots and a poor short game that ruined her bid to become the first player to hit Y100 million in earnings after 14 tournaments.
Still, Saso’s four-under 284 total dropped her to a share of sixth with three others, six strokes behind the lanky Hara.
But in a latest JLPGA advisory, the 2020 season will be extended to early next year with the circuit to add more events to make up for the cancellation of some tournaments this year due to the global health crisis, keeping the ICTSI-backed Saso’s drive for the Player of the Year honors.
Hara, meanwhile, carded a 72 and a 278 following her victory in Japan Women’s Open last October.
The 21-year-old Hara banked the top purse of Y30 million and moved to No. 3 in the Player of the Year derby which Furue continued to lead on a strong closing 68 to snatch runner-up honors in the Y120 million final event for the year worth 300 points at 280.
Furue, who started the final round at joint 10th after a woeful 75 Saturday, thus pooled 1371.78 points, frustrating Saso, who settled for measly 98 points for 1146.85 points in their fierce battle for the Player of the Year diadem.
Hara assembled 1049.32 points for third.
Saso received Y4.638 million for her joint sixth place effort but kept the lead in the money rankings though she missed hitting the Y100 million mark before the year ends with total earnings of Y93,891.170.
Still, it was a remarkable campaign for the 19-year-old rookie, who made quite an impression by scoring back-to-back victories at NEC Karuizawa and Nitori Ladies last August before her game went on a downswing with only one Top 10 finish to show in her next six tournaments.
That slump led to a first missed cut stint after nine consecutive cuts made and though she redeemed herself with a superb runner-up finish in the Toto Japan Classic, she failed to advance again in the next tournament, finished tied for third at Daio Paper Elleair before ending up at joint sixth this week.
