The LPGA Tour heads to Japan for the 40th annual Mizuno Classic for its last stop in its four-week Asia circuit. A 79 player field will compete for three days with a $1.2 million purse and a $180,000 first-place check up for grabs.
Japan’s Momoko Ueda seeks to defend her title after battling China’s Shanshan Feng in a three-hole playoff last year. The course plays hot for Ueda as she claimed her second Mizuno Classic title last season with the first coming in 2007 as a non-member. The five-year veteran on Tour has eight career top-10 finishes, but her season-best in 2012 is a tie for 12th at the LPGA LOTTE Championship Presented by J Golf and the Evian Masters Presented by Societe Generale.
Inbee Park seeks her second Asia swing title and enters the week following her runner-up finish at the Sunrise LPGA Taiwan Championship Presented by Audi, where she crossed the $2 million mark in season earnings. The South Korea native scored her 11th top-10 finish in 12 events last week, putting her in close position to steal the No. 1 spot in Rolex Player of the Year race from Stacy Lewis.
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