For the third time in seven years, the USA women’s amateur final will be a battle of international talent: Japan’s Saki Baba takes on Canada’s Monet Chun on Sunday in Chambers Bay. The match is yet another sign that the women’s amateur game is thriving around the world, as before 2016 the last final without an American competitor was in 1910.
Baba, the 17-year-old born in Tokyo, may be new to golf in the United States, but she gave absolutely no hint of it in her landslide 7&6 win over Floridian Bailey Shoemaker. After winning the first hole of the day, Baba hit fairway after fairway and cleared the greens well, while his 17-year-old opponent clearly struggled with speed on the undulating putting surfaces. Baba closed the match early on the rollable par-4 12th with a birdie. She is the first Japanese player to reach the final since Michiko Hattori won the championship in 1985.
“During the round, I was just thinking, I’m going to win, I’m going to win, all the time,” Baba said, using a translator to speak with the media.
Baba’s quiet confidence helped her put together a summer of three stellar USGA Championship appearances. The high schooler, who is currently ranked 45th in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings, qualified in Japan for the US Women’s Open on her 17th birthday. She then made the cut at Pine Needles and finished tied for 49th. Baba then won co-medalist honors a few weeks later at US Girls’ Junior in Bowling Green, Ky., where she ultimately lost in the Round of 16.
Baba attributes much of her success this week to the American golf experience she has gained over the past few months. The teenager is full of praise for her love of playing in the United States, and her growing comfort level is evident. After Girls’ Junior, Baba wrote on Instagram: “American golf is fun! I want to go to an American university. This week, Baba is using a local Chambers Bay caddy, Beau Brushert, who has been at the venue for the 2015 US Open for 13 years.
Chun, Baba’s opponent in the final, was not so dominant in her semi-final win, but held off a valiant effort from Ireland’s Annabel Wilson, winning 2 and 1. The match looked to be tight from the start, with Chun winning on the first hole and Wilson bouncing back to level with a win on the second. However, poor decision making by Wilson and an outrageous birdie from a sprawling fairway bunker on the 13th led to the Canadian securing her place in the final.
A junior at the University of Michigan and 143rd amateur in the world, Chun, 21, has worked hard on his game to reach this level of competitiveness. According to Golf Channel analysts, the Ontario native went through a tough time with her golf after a decorated junior career, and there was a period where she struggled to hit 80.
“Yeah, I wasn’t very swing stable, so being here right now is actually a huge accomplishment for me,” Chun said. “I feel like last year at school this season was probably the best I’ve played so far, so I’m pretty happy with where I am.”
Chun has been in tears for six months. She was an individual Big Ten Championship medalist in the spring and her play led the Wolverines to their first Big Ten title. Just a few weeks ago, she won the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship at Westmount Golf & Country Club by two strokes.
The 36-hole championsihp match begins at 9:30 a.m. PT and will air on the Golf Channel beginning at 7:10 p.m. ET.
