Focused on US Open, Saso eyes Paris Olympics

MANILA, Philippines – While her primary focus is on winning the US Women’s Open for the second time in four years, Yuka Saso is also setting her sights on another Olympic appearance.

“I’m not sure where my rankings is right now, but I’ll try to play well in the next two tournaments to give myself a chance to get into the Olympics,” said Saso, who tied for ninth in her Olympic debut in Tokyo in 2021.

Currently ranked No. 30 in the world women’s golf ranking, Saso is No. 4 among the Japanese hopefuls, trailing world No. 18 Nasa Hataoka, No. 23 Miyu Yamashita and No. 25 Ayaka Furue.

With two more tournaments remaining before the qualification period for the 60-player field concludes on June 24, Saso is determined to secure one of the coveted berths via the backdoor.

“But my focus is on the US Women’s Open first,” said Saso.

The ICTSI-backed ace is banking on his good form as she seeks strong finishes in her next LPGA tournaments, expressing hopes of still making it to the Paris Games from July 26 to August 11.

“This year’s been pretty good, every tournament I’ve made fewer mistakes compared to last year,” said Saso. “I’ve been consistent with my shots and I think a bit of luck in a few rounds helped.”

In eight tournaments in the season, Saso made all but one cut, posting her best finish of joint ninth in the T-Mobile Match Play.

To stay in shape, she said: “I work on every aspect of my game, from driving to putting, because to win a tournament, everything has to work together.”

Meanwhile, Dottie Ardina has moved to No. 57 in the women’s qualified athletes’ list, joining Bianca Pagdanganan, who is at No. 37, as representatives for the Philippines in the Quadrennial Games.