Pagdanganan builds up for US Women’s Open

MANILA, Philippines — Bianca Pagdanganan hopes to plug the hole in her game arsenal and reach top form in time for next week’s US Women’s Open as she sets out for the Volunteers of America Classic beginning Thursday (Dec. 3) at the Old American Golf Club in The Colony, Texas.

The 23-year-old Filipina rookie had looked forward to dishing out a strong finish in the Pelican Women’s Championship two weeks ago after churning out a career-best third place effort in the LPGA Drive On tilt the previous week as she primes up for her US Open debut. But she wound up tied for 34th instead on a couple of 69s, a 73 and a 72, missing 14 fairways and 26 greens in four days.

The LPGA Tour driving leader had worked on those parts of her game during the break, hopeful of putting them all together when she launches her drive on No. 1 at 8:15 a.m. with Chinese Yu Liu and Amy Olson of the US.

The 2019 SEA Games double gold medalist is likewise hard-pressed to extend her consecutive cuts made to eight since the field also features the world’s leading players all priming up for the US Women’s Open unfolding Dec. 10 at the Champions Club in Houston.

They include world No. 1 Jin Young Ko and fellow Koreans Sung Hyun Park and Jeongeun Lee6, the defending US Open champion, and multi-titled Inbee Park; Minjee Lee and Hannah Green of Australia, Thai sisters Ariya and Moriya Jutanugarn, Swede Anna Nordqvist, German Sophia Popov, Nasa Hataoka of Japan and Americans Cristie Kerr, Jennifer Kupcho, Stacy Lewis and defending champion Cheyenne Knight.

Meanwhile, LPGA of Japan Tour-based Yuka Saso is set to leave for the US this weekend, thrilled over the chance of finally slugging it out with the cream of the world crop in the US Open.

The 19-year-old Fil-Japanese, along with 27 other JLPGA stalwarts, earned tickets to the world’s premier women’s championship on the strength of their world rankings following impressive performances in the just-concluded 14-tournament season where Saso won two tournaments and made six Top 10 finishes.