The Jutanugarn sisters were with one another Saturday night when texts arrived on each of their phones from the LPGA. Ariya, at 25 the younger of the two, checked to see what time she’d be playing on Sunday at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. She looked to her sister – the two are staying together – and said, “9:35.” To which, Moriya, 26, answered, “I’m 9:35, too.”
“Oh,” Ariya said. “Three players?” “No,” said Moriya. “It’s a two-ball.”
And off they went on Sunday, the two sisters who trained by running through graveyards and hit tens of thousands of balls together and pushed one another from humble beginnings in Thailand all the way to the fairways of the LPGA. No surprise here: They really enjoyed their day. Ariya, former World No. 1, struggled a little and shot 72. But it was fun for her to watch her sister play so well. Moriya birdied five holes, including the last, to shoot 69 and climb up the board.
“I have played with her a lot, but normally in a threesome,” Ariya said. “Usually, we have another player with us. But with only two, it’s really fun. She played really good golf today. It’s fun to be competitive, but at the tournament, we’re rooting for each other. I was impressed with the way she played.”
They shared some laughs, too, each of the two giggling after Moriya nearly hit it in the water at 15 and Ariya did the same at 18, and both shots turned out fine. They last were grouped at a major (along with Stacy Lewis) on Saturday at the 2020 U.S. Women’s Open at Champions in Houston.
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