Rio Takeda went the extra mile to record her first victory on the LPGA Tour, defeating Marina Alex in a playoff that lasted six sudden-death holes to capture the Toto Japan Classic in front of her home-country crowd in Shiga, Japan.
Takeda, 21, finished with a birdie on the par-5 18th hole to card a 5-under-par 67 and finish at 15-under 201 at Seta Golf Course.
Takeda and Alex (66 on Sunday) each notched a birdie on the first playoff hole and pars on the next four before Takeda took control on the final hole.
After Alex missed her attempt for birdie, Takeda sank hers to capture her milestone victory.
“So that was my first time playoff, so I wasn’t expecting that the game was that long, but I managed to win so I’m really happy,” Takeda said.
By winning the $2 million tournament, Takeda is eligible to accept immediate LPGA Tour membership for the remainder of the season or defer until the following season. She said she is still weighing her decision by taking stock of what’s ahead.
“So this week I could manage to have my eighth win and I’m surprised with that, but I have three more tournaments to go in Japan so I need to brace myself, and I just try to finish my year in a great way,” she said.
Despite falling short in the playoffs, Alex earned her best finish on the LPGA Tour since winning the 2022 FIR Hills Seri Park Championship. She is projected to move to No. 32 in the Race to the CME Globe points list, qualifying for the season-ending championship.
When she booked her trip to Hawaii for the LOTTE Championship, to be played next weekend, she thought she might need the points she could earn there to qualify for the Race the CME Globe. Now, her mission has shifted.
“Really excited. I added Hawaii a few weeks ago in an effort to try and get into CME,” Alex said. “I’m still excited to go there, but I think it kind of motivated me to get the job done. And so it’s nice to have these next couple weeks not worried about that as trying to get in and actually just keep building on my game and get geared up for CME.”
The Toto Japan Classic was restricted to 54 regulation holes after Saturday’s third round was washed out by rain.
Haeran Ryu of South Korea was one shot behind after regulation with a 66. She finished at 14-under 202. She was one stroke ahead of Yealimi Noah (70) and Japan’s Saiki Fujita (68).
Japan’s Hana Wakimoto, who led after the first two rounds, shot a 73 on Sunday and finished in a four-way tie for sixth place. Countrywoman Yui Kawamoto (67), Denmark’s Nanna Koerstz Madsen (68) and Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn (71) also shot 12-under for the tournament.
–Field Level Media