IF the report of the reputable Japanese Kyodo News Agency is true, there could be a potential tug-of-war between the Philippines and Japan over the nationality of Filipino-Japanese Yuka Saso, who captured the 76th US Women’s Open crown over the weekend in dramatic style.
Aside from chronicling the unforgettable exploits of Saso, 19, at the Olympic Club Lake course in San Francisco, the report on the English edition of the Japanese news agency’s website also mentioned an interesting item quoting his father, Masakazu Saso.
“Saso, who won the right to participate in the LPGA tour for five years (with her US Women’s Open win), is required under Japanese law to choose one nationality by the age of 22. According to her father, Masakazu Saso, she is expected to choose Japanese nationality (by that age).”
The story also mentioned the fact that “Saso is expected to play for the Philippines at this summer’s Tokyo Olympics.”
Should the switch in citizenship come to pass, the choice would be disappointing to her legions of Filipino fans, who cheered the Bulacan-golfer halfway around the globe, something that she readily acknowledged during the post-tournament briefing.
“I don’t know what’s happening in the Philippines right now, but I’m just thankful that there’s so many people in the Philippines cheering for me,” she said. “I don’t know how to thank them. They gave me so much energy. I want to say thank you to everyone.”
Showing her appreciation for both her Filipino and Japanese roots, the soft-spoken golfer answered her questions tossed at her in Tagalog, Nihongo and English easily without any hesitation.
Before her US Women’s Open triumph, Saso already has given pride and honor to the country by anchoring the national women’s squad to a sweep of the team and individual gold medals in the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia.
She has also won two big tournaments in the Japanese LPGA tour, racking up a total of 97,721,000 yen (roughly P42 million) in earnings in 20 tournaments since her JLPGA debut in 2020.
With her $1 million championship prize (P48 million) for winning the US Women’s Open, she is the country’s first Filipino “100-million Peso Woman,” not bad for somebody who turned pro 18 months hack.
With her US Women’s Open triumph, Saso’s morale will be high and she undoubtedly will be among the pre-tournament favorites in the Tokyo Olympic women’s golf tournament set July 29 to Aug. 1 at the Kasumagaseki Country Club in Saitama, Japan.
She will be among the Filipino bets tipped to end the country’s 97-year gold medal drought in the quadrennial sports showcase.
Given her undisputable talent, Saso will likely continue to accumulate more honors and titles in the future but after the Olympics, under whose flag remains to be seen.
