Nine Japanese players including Ayaka Furue will compete in the Scottish Women's Open. They talk about their enthusiasm in an interview (Part 1)

The ISPS Handa Scottish Women's Open of the LPGA Tour will be held on July 24th at Dundonald Links in Scotland, and will be broadcast live every day on WOWOW. Nine Japanese players will be participating, including Ayaka Furue, who won her first LPGA Tour title in her rookie year in the 2022 tournament, as well as Reo Takeda, Miyu Yamashita, Akie Iwai, Chirei Iwai, Hinako Shibuno, Minami Katsu, Yuri Yoshida, and Saki Baba. Ahead of the opening, Furue and others shared their enthusiasm in an interview with WOWOW. The two-part series will be broadcast in two parts.

◇Reo Takeda

--You had a week off. Were you able to relax?

I had never been to places like Paris or London before, so the food was delicious and it was a very fulfilling experience.

--The wind will likely have an effect on this week's links-style course, what are your impressions?

The course really changes depending on the weather, so I hope I can play my own way and adapt to the conditions.

--When the wind blows, do you make the effort to hit the ball lower?

I get affected when the wind is against me or the ball is high, so I'd like to be able to control that.

How have you been feeling this week?

I hope we can improve little by little as we get closer to the match.

--This will be the match before the British Open (Women's Open). How do you want to play this week?

I would like to do my best and play my own golf for four days this week as well.

◇Miyu Yamashita

How did you spend your week off?

I was able to really relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery during my week here.

--What are your impressions after playing this week's course?

It doesn't have the feel of "The Links," but there are bunkers on the course that make it seem like you might get in, and the greens don't seem particularly firm, but I think it might be difficult to get the vertical distance right.

What do you think will be the key point?

I think it's the wind. The weather can be windy or it can rain suddenly, so it's impossible to predict, and I'll do my best to respond appropriately when the time comes.

--Do you ever consider the wind's effect on the ball's height and trajectory?

If there is too much spin, the wind will have a big effect, so I would like to hit the ball while avoiding increasing the amount of spin as much as possible, but still be able to get carry.

--This will be a good week to make adjustments before the majors, but what will motivate you this week?

I'm playing with the mindset of competing at the top, and I want to work hard with every shot to achieve that, but in order to do that I need to fix what I need to fix and play in good condition with confidence, so I'm going to do my best starting tomorrow.

◇Ayaka Furue

--What are your impressions now that you've come to this course where you won in your rookie year?

I think the image will remain the same, so if I can play good golf in Scotland, I hope I can do it while managing it well.

--I heard it's a little wet. What are the conditions like?

I think there's less rolling and bouncing than usual, so that's a little different.

--Wind and undulations will also be important factors, but what do you think are the key aspects?

I think the most important thing in improving your score is to get the ball on the fairway and onto the green, so I think that was the first thing I thought about.

--How do you calculate the wind strength when following and against the wind?

I think it's important to know how much you can truly trust the person, so I'd like to keep that in mind as I do my best.

How have you been since you came here?

I think it's going to be okay.

--This will be the game before the majors. Please tell us your enthusiasm.

I want to play golf with confidence, so I would like to be in the best condition possible here and give it my best shot.

◇Akinori Iwai

--It's been a week since Evian, how have you been?

Last week I was in London practicing, training, sightseeing, and having fun (laughs). I was able to refresh myself. I enjoyed Madame Tussauds, a place in London that has wax figures of famous people. I also went to a Japanese restaurant nearby, which is very delicious and always crowded, but it was quite refreshing.

--This week's course is a links course. What are your impressions?

The course itself isn't particularly tricky, but I think it can get very difficult depending on the wind, and it's not that hard to get pars around the green, so I'm hoping to attack aggressively and play my own game.

How have you been feeling this week so far?

It's not bad. I'm not bad every week, but I think if I can play my best in the match, I'll get good results, so I'd like to keep it simple and not worry about it.

--I heard it's a bit wet after it rained last week, how do you think the conditions are?

I played yesterday, and the greens weren't that fast and the fairways weren't that hard, but I won't really know until tomorrow.

--It's the week before the British Open (Women's Open). Tell us your enthusiasm for this week.

I believe being able to enjoy playing on this course and in this weather will be a valuable experience for me, so I will do my best to achieve good results.

*The ISPS Handa Scottish Women's Open will be broadcast live every day on WOWOW. The first (July 24th) and second (25th) days will be broadcast from 5:30pm, the third (26th) from 9pm, and the final day (27th) from 8pm. All will be broadcast and streamed live on WOWOW Live and WOWOW On Demand. WOWOW On Demand will also have a "camera dedicated to Japanese players" to stream live footage of Japanese players' play. The "camera dedicated to Japanese players" on the first day will start at 9pm.