History Beckons for Shibuno at US Women's Open

Houston, Texas, United States: Nobody said winning a US Women’s Open is easy. It’s a 72-hole test of nerves, pressure, tough course conditions and one of the best fields in golf.

And when Mother Nature throws a curveball, the challenge only gets super-charged. A late Friday afternoon storm that dumped four-tenths of an inch of rain on Champions Golf Club turned Moving Day into a day of survival.

Under-par scores on the 6,635-yard, par-71 Cypress Creek Course were scarce. None of the 19 golfers who began round three in red figures managed to break par, including 36-hole leader Hinako Shibuno (74). By day’s end, only four players were in red figures through 54 holes: Japan’s Shibuno (four-under 209), American Amy Olson (210), the first round leader, Thai Moriya Jutanugarn (212) and Korean Kim2 Ji-yeong (212).

In fact, only two of the 66 players who made the 36-hole cut broke 71 on day three: Koreans Ryu Hae-ran (70) and Kim2, a US Women’s Open rookie who moved from a tie for 47th to a share of third after a bogey-free 67 that included a chip-in birdie on the par-five ninth hole, her last of the day.

Changing weather conditions was the major story on Saturday. A damp, chilly and overcast morning morphed into sunshine by late afternoon. Players were also challenged by occasional mud on their balls from the wet fairways and a different wind from the first two rounds, which were contested on the club’s Cypress Creek and Jackrabbit courses due to the field size (156) and limited daylight.

After all the leaderboard volatility, Shibuno enters Sunday’s final round with a golden opportunity to win a second Major in 16 months. Not bad for someone making her first US Women’s Open start and competing in just her fifth Major. The 22-year-old won the 2019 Women’s British Open at Woburn by shooting four rounds in the 60s.

That won’t happen this week after her 74. Yet the opportunity to become the first player from Japan to hoist the Harton S. Semple Trophy is within reach. Thirty-three years ago, legendary Ayako Okamoto was the last player from Japan to carry a 54-hole lead into Sunday in this championship. She wound up losing a three-woman play-off in 1987 at Plainfield Country Club to Laura Davies (JoAnne Carner was the third player).

Nicknamed ‘Smiling Cinderella’ for her on-course demeanour and underdog disposition, Shibuno seems to possess the right mindset for tackling the heat of Sunday at a Major. Even an opening-hole bogey didn’t faze her on Saturday. She would make three more while converting just one birdie putt on the par-five fifth.

“I feel like it’s either a great poker face or she’s that smiling assassin,” said former world number one and two-time Major champion Lydia Ko, who is five strokes back. “I feel like I smile quite a lot out there, but I’m like pretty grumpy compared to her. You saw her at the British Open. Going into that Sunday there might have been doubts, because not many people have heard of her compared to some other players. But she showed them who is boss and she’s clearly doing that right now.”

Amateur Kaitlyn Papp, who was grouped with Shibuno, said: “Her demeanour was great. She was really neutral the whole day, never got too high or too low, depending upon how she did on a certain hole. That’s what impressed me the most about playing with her.”

Shibuno’s closer pursuer, however, is Olson, the 28-year-old seeking her first professional win. The 2009 US Girls’ Junior champion rebounded from a second-round 72 on the Jackrabbit Course to card an even-par 71. This is the third time she will play in the final group of a Major, following the 2018 ANA Inspiration and 2018 Evian Championship, where she double-bogeyed the 72nd hole to lose by one stroke to Angela Stanford.

“Obviously, your mental fortitude and perspective are extremely important and you can never get too high, you can never get too low,” said Olson. “I’ve definitely had some times of adversity already this week and I’m proud of how I’ve bounced back and never given up.”

Moriya Jutanugarn, the older sister of 2018 champion Ariya Jutanugarn, would like to make some history on Sunday by making them the first siblings to win the US Women’s Open. Brothers Willie and Alex Smith won the US Open in 1899 and 1906/1910, respectively. Two other sets of sisters have captured USGA titles: Margaret and Harriot Curtis both won the US Women’s Amateur, and World Golf Hall of Fame inductee Hollis Stacy (three US Women’s Opens and three US Girls’ Juniors) and Martha Leach (2009 US Women’s Mid-Amateur).

Midway through her second nine, Moriya, who played with Ariya and hometown favourite Stacy Lewis, reached four-under for the championship, only to bogey 14 and double-bogey 17.

Besides Ko, 2018 US Girls’ Junior champion Noh Yealimi, Megan Khang and Papp are in the group that sits at even-par, four back of Shibuno. Joint sixth overnight, Yuka Saso of the Philippines, a former Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific runner-up, carded a third-round 77 and is tied 25th on four-over.