Golf: 2014 International Crown – Japan (3rd Place

The inaugural International Crown on the LPGA Tour took place at the Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Md., and is scheduled to occur every even year. The 2016 edition will be hosted by Rich Harvest Farms outside of Chicago from July 18-24, and in 2018, the event will move to South Korea.

Team (with individual’s world ranking in parentheses as of Mar. 31, 2014, the roster announcement date):
Mika Miyazato (27)
Ai Miyazato (31)
Sakura Yokomine (36)
Mamiko Higa (50)

Results

Day 1 – Four-ball

Sweden (Anna Nordqvist and Caroline Hedvall) all square with Japan (Mamiko Higa and Mika Miyazato)
Japan (Ai Miyazato) def. Sweden (Pernilla Lindberg and Mikaela Parmlid), 2 up

Day 2 – Four-ball

Japan (Mamiko Higa and Mika Miyazato) def. Australia (Minjee Lee and Karrie Webb), 3 and 2
Japan (Sakura Yokomine and Ai Miyazato) all square with Australia (Katherine Hull-Kirk and Lindsey Wright)

Note: Ai Miyazato and Sakura Yokomine were six down with seven holes to play against Kirk and Wright before staging a comeback to halve their match. Said the Golf Channel’s Judy Rankin: “This is one of the most amazing turnarounds I have seen in match play.”

Day 3 – Four-ball

South Korea (Inbee Park and So Yeon Ryu) def. Japan (Mamiko Higa and Mika Miyazato (JPN), 4 and 3
Japan (Ai Miyazato and Sakura Yokomine) def. South Korea (Na Yeon Choi and I.K. Kim), 3 and 2

Day 4 – Singles

South Korea (So Yeon Ryu) def. Japan (Yokomine), 1 up
Sweden (Nordqvist) def. Japan (Higa), 3 and 2
Japan (Mika Miyazato) def. Thailand (Onnarin Sattayabanphot), 3 and 1
Spain (Azahara Muñoz) def. Japan (Ai Miyazato), 2 and 1

Photos: Team Japan – 2014 International Crown
all photos by Kwai Chan / Meniscus Magazine

Ai Miyazato (left) was the No. 1 golfer in the world on several occasions in 2010. She has nine LPGA Tour titles. (photo by Kwai Chan / Meniscus Magazine)