WOWOW Co., Ltd.
The “Shoprite LPGA Classic” featuring 8 Japanese players, including last week’s U.S. Women’s Open champion Yuka Sasao and 2nd place Hinako Shibuno, will be broadcast live every day on WOWOW and live streaming with a “camera exclusively for Japanese players”! All broadcasts and distribution are free on the first day!!
-Day 1- 6/8 (Sat) 1:00 am ~ [WOWOW Prime] ☆ Live broadcast every day & “Camera exclusively for Japanese players” live on WOWOW On Demand! *On the first day, broadcasting, distribution, and cameras exclusively for Japanese players are free!
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[WOWOW LPGA program official site] https://www.wowow.co.jp/sports/lpga/ [WOWOW On Demand] https://wod.wowow.co.jp/genre/107
[WOWOW Official X & Instagram Account] @wowowgolf
The tournament started in 1986, and is a three-day competition to win the championship. The stage is a links-type course facing the Atlantic Ocean that opened in 1914 and boasts a history of over 100 years. Although it looks flat at first glance, there are complex undulations from the fairway to the green. The course has one of the shortest total yardages on the tour, but the small greens, which are mixed with sea breezes, pot bunkers, and grasses that grow at different rates, such as bent grass and Poana grass, pose problems for players. Eight Japanese tour members will be participating, including last week’s U.S. Women’s Open champion Yuka Sasao and 2nd place Hinako Shibuno! There are only two tournaments left until the third major. Pay attention to Hataoka, Furue and others who must earn points! WOWOW, which broadcasts the tournament live every day, conducted a
preliminary interview. ■Yuka Sasao
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Q. Congratulations again on winning the U.S. Women’s Open. This is your second win, how do you feel about it? “The first time, I didn’t have a tour card, so it was a year of many surprises.I didn’t think I would win this time either, so it was a surprise, but I was able to put some of the experience I had three years ago to use. Q. It was a tough course, but does it give you confidence that you were able to win? “I don’t know. I think I still need to practice.” Q. This week is a 3-day tournament, but what do you think will be the key points? “I don’t know exactly what the wind will be like yet, but I think the greens will be the most difficult, so I want to concentrate and prepare properly.”Q.Where do you want to focus on putting? “Even though I’m preparing, I don’t even know how I’m going to bounce, so I hope I can enjoy golf somehow.” Q. What are your goals for this week and a message to your Japanese fans? “This week, I want to do what I always do, focus hard, and have fun playing golf.I would like to thank all the Japanese fans for supporting not only me, but also the players, from late at night and early in the morning.There is much more to come. There will also be a major tournament, so please support us as much as possible.”■Hinako Shibuno
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Q. You had a great result in 2nd place at last week’s U.S. Women’s Open, but could you please look back on it first? “It was a surprising final result considering my previous results. There was some progress, and I will continue to work even harder. I think it was a tournament that made me think, “I don’t know what to do.” Q.This week will be a series of consecutive games. I’m sure you were under pressure last week, but how are you feeling, your condition, your concentration? I want to sleep, eat, and do my best for tomorrow.” Q. I think it’s been two years since I played this course, but what are your impressions? “The greens are really difficult.It’s a course that I think is difficult in a different way, so the distance is about that.” There aren’t many birdies left, so I’d like to get some birdies, but if I don’t get a birdie, I’ll try to switch things up as soon as possible.”Q.I think things have been going well this week. I was hitting the ball well on the practice field, but how does it feel? “I still have the good image from last week, so I think it’s important from now on to be able to show it well in games.I want to do my best.” ” Q. Lastly, looking forward to this week, and I think a lot of fans were rooting for you. Please give a message to the fans. “Last week I came in 2nd place, which was a very surprising result considering I had been playing really difficult golf up until now, but I have been supporting you a lot through the good times and the bad times. The people who have supported me have really given me strength, and I think I must continue to do my best. Thank you for your continued support!” ■Ayaka Furue
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Q. You finished in the top 10 at last week’s U.S. Women’s Open. Could you look back on that? “It was a week where I had to use my brain on a really tough course, but I think I was able to persevere well and stay focused until the end.”Q.What are your impressions of this week’s course? “I think the greens at Poana are a tricky course, so I hope I can do well on them.” Q.The conditions of the greens look like they’ll be completely different from the morning, but do you have any strategies for dealing with them? Or? “It’s going to be cross bumpy in the afternoon, so I’d like to continue improving through the first round in the afternoon.”Q.What do you think is the most important point this week? “I think the most important thing is to keep the fairway and hit the greens, so I want to do my best and make good decisions.” Q. Please tell us your enthusiasm for this week. “I want to concentrate for three days, pass the qualifying rounds first, and then aim for the top.” ■Nasa Hataoka
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Q. First of all, could you reschedule last week’s major? “I thought I was in good shape after adjusting for a week, but I couldn’t improve my score in the final round and fell down the rankings. That’s really frustrating.” Q. Did you make any adjustments for this week’s tournament? “Yes. I had Monday off, and this week is a 3-day tournament, so I think I got a good look at the course. I also have one more day today. I can make adjustments, so I’d like to do my best to get a good result this week.” Q. It’s been a while since I last played this course, but how do you feel after playing a practice round again? “I think the last time I played was two years ago, and the course was a bit rough then.This week, the greens were well grassed, and yesterday’s rain made the greens softer. I don’t know if there will be any, but I don’t think the conditions are that bad.” Q. I’m sure the wind will also be a factor, but what do you think will be the key point this week? The wind is going to get stronger, so I think we’ll be really concerned about adjusting the distance in that area.” Q. Please tell us your enthusiasm for this week. “Since it’s a three-day tournament, I don’t think I’ll be able to rank high unless I get a good score each day, so I want to do my best.” ■Yuna Nishimura
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Q. First of all, how do you look back on last week’s U.S. Women’s Open? “It was a very tough course, and I didn’t really get to play the way I wanted, but it was an experience that lasted four days. Q. This week has been a series of back-to-back matches, but how have you felt? It’s not a bad feeling, so I feel like I’m just making minor adjustments.” Q. This week is 3 days, but are you thinking about strategies? “I think it will give you a good score on the course, It’s a short three-day tournament, so I think the first day will be important.There are a lot of holes that can be attacked, so I hope I can play a little aggressively.”Q.This week, the wind was a factor and there was some grass. “The greens are softer than last year, so I’m a little worried about the hole, but it’s not really about the result. I hope I can do my best by focusing on hitting where I want to hit the ball and making the strokes I want to do.”Q.Finally, please share your enthusiasm for this week. “I want to start the engine well from the first day, and I want to do my best to play for three days first.” Minami Katsu
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Q. There was a slight downturn, how did you adjust it? “The first week was slow. I spent it training and preparing for this week, and in the second week I was able to play a good round of golf and practice on the course, so I think I had a good off-season.” Q.Are there any areas in particular that you worked on in terms of physical strength or technique? “I have a habit of being a little out of control, so I have to be conscious of that.Also, the sinking of the body, or the backswing. There were some parts where I was being too conscious about it, so I made some adjustments in that area as well.” Q. Sasao won the U.S. Women’s Open last week. How did you feel? “As expected, Japanese players were successful. I was really happy to see him win, and I was especially happy that a player who is active in the United States won. Shibuko (Shibuno), who came in second place, worked hard to come in second place, so I was also really happy about that. I was really happy and it inspired me, and since Yuka (Sasao) didn’t know my contact information, I wasn’t able to send it for a while, but Shibuko did have my contact information, so she immediately sent it to me and said, “Nice finish!” We said, “Let’s do our best together again.” Q. This week is a three-day tournament, a continuation of last year’s, but what are your impressions of the course? However, I didn’t have a bad impression of it.The greens were softer than last year, and the fairways were rainy so it might have stopped, but I felt it was softer and a different course. I want to do my best while making good adjustments here and there.”Q.Finally, please share your enthusiasm for this week. “First of all, I want to do my best to pass the qualifying round, so I want to get as many birdies as possible to pass the qualifying round. I want to get as many birdies as possible and go to the final round, so I want to do my best.” ■Mao Saigo
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Q.What is your impression of this week’s course? “The fairways have been soft due to the rain this past week, so I think the conditions may be difficult, but I hope I can improve my score.”Q.This Poana grass gets especially tough in the afternoon. I have the impression that it will come, but what do you think? “It’s the same with putting, but the first bang tends to bounce irregularly whether it’s a shot or an approach, so I feel like I need to be careful about that.” Q.What do you think will be the key point this week? “There was some wind blowing today as well, which affected my flying distance considerably, so I want to do my best as a judge.” Q. Since it’s a 3-day tournament, do you have any thoughts on how to attack? ? “I think I’ve been getting good scores as usual, so I’ll do my best to improve on my performance.” Q. Please share your enthusiasm for this week. “I want to do my best to get a lot of birdies and compete at the top with aggressive plays.” ■Yuri Yoshida
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Q. Can you look back on last week’s U.S. Women’s Open? “Last week was one of the most difficult games I’ve ever played, so much so that I ranked among the top. I wasn’t able to play as well as I wanted, so it felt even more difficult, but I’m really glad I was able to compete for four days.” Q. This week What do you think will be the key point? “I think the key is to be on the green.I want to get as close as possible with my shot, and it’s a green that you won’t be able to hit just because it’s a short putt, so I hope I can control my mind and get around it.” ” Q. Since it is a consecutive match, how is your shot feeling and physical condition? “I feel like I’m getting better and my physical condition is really good, so I’m just wondering how well I can play golf.” Q. What are you thinking about offensively? “I think it depends on the wind, but I still want to get it close to the green.There aren’t any obstacles in front of me, so I’m sure that the players who fly will try to get a lot of eagles, so I’m sure they’ll get a lot of eagles from there. I want to make sure I don’t miss out on anything.” Q. Lastly, please tell me about your life. “This is one of the most important games for me among the series of really important games, and this is my first three-day tournament this year, so I want to do my best to improve my score as soon as possible.”◆◆◆◆◆[ WOWOW LPGA Broadcast/Distribution Schedule] ◆◆◆◆◆ “Shoprite LPGA Classic” ◆ Broadcast Information ≪WOWOW Prime≫ – Day 1 – 6/8 (Sat) 1:00 a.m. – [WOWOW Prime] – Day 2 – 6/9 (Sunday) 5:00 a.m. – [WOWOW Prime] – Last day – 6/10 (Monday) 3:00 a.m. [WOWOW Prime] ☆ Live broadcast every day & WOWOW On Demand “Japanese player exclusive camera” Live streaming! *On the first day, broadcasting, distribution, and cameras exclusively for Japanese players are free! ◆Course Seaview A Dolce Hotel Bay Course, New Jersey, USA ◆Notable players Yuka Sasao, Hinako Shibuno, Ayaka Furue, Nasa Hataoka, Yuna Nishimura, Minami Katsu, Mao Saigo, Yuri Yoshida, Curry Webb, Jinyoung Ko, Attaya Titikun, Brooke Henderson, Ashley Buhai [WOWOW LPGA Program Official Site] https://www.wowow.co.jp/sports/lpga/[object 17]
https://wod. wowow.co.jp/genre/107 [WOWOW Official X & Instagram Account] @wowowgolf
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