Anyone Remember Hisako Higuchi?

Both Karen Crouse and Doug Ferguson seem to think that noting that Se Ri Pak beat Y.E. Yang to a major suffices. But the 1st Asian-born major winner was Hisako "Chako" Higuchi in the LPGA Championship in 1977. So, as talk shifts to the significance and impact of Yang's win, will its repercussions be more Pak-like or more Higuchi-like? We won't know til 2020, but it's fun to speculate!

over 2 years ago The Constructivist 8 comments 0 recs |

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I do remember hard-luck Ayako Okamoto

I think she never won a major title but ended up in the top 3 about a thousand times.

by Cairo on Aug 18, 2009 10:03 AM EDT reply actions

Actually

Okamoto was the first foreign golfer to win LPGA Player of the Year.

by Bill Jempty on Aug 18, 2009 10:22 AM EDT reply actions

A year she placed 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th in the majors

by Cairo on Aug 18, 2009 10:24 AM EDT up reply actions

she owes me money !! (lol)(I love old jokes)

"this ball will fit in that fairway"

by courtgolf on Aug 18, 2009 11:05 AM EDT reply actions

Okamoto...

…is the best Japanese golfer ever to play on the LPGA Tour. With 17 career wins on the LPGA and a money title and POY in 1987, she was the 8th player in LPGA history to break the $2M barrier in career winnings. (Ai Miyazato just passed her there, but purses in their respective eras are not comparable.) What I don’t get is why Yuri Fudoh, who was more dominant on the JLPGA for longer than Annika was on the LPGA, never decided to commit full-time to the LPGA.

by The Constructivist on Aug 18, 2009 2:25 PM EDT reply actions