Tee Sheet: We Seriously Need to Talk About Women's Golf in Japan.

If there's one thing the opening round of the 2025 AIG Women's Open taught us—it's that Japan not only has a strong presence in women's golf, but a highly competitive one, too.

At one point during Thursday's round, every player inside the top five on the leaderboard were all Japanese, and as play concludes, six players inside the top-10 are from Japan, including the 2025 Chevron champion Mao Saigo.

Heading into the second round, Rio Takeda and Eri Okayama lead the way at 5-under par, while their fellow countrywomen sit within a shot or two.

Miyū Yamashita, who's one of the best-dressed players on Tour, made the turn at 5-under after bogeying the first and rallying off four consecutive birdies and an eagle on the par 5, ninth hole. She sits in solo third, at 4-under.

Yamashita, is currently the 15th ranked player in the world, and she's playing like it. This season she has 13 made cuts in 15 starts, and has managed six top-10s, her highest finish coming at the JM Eagle LA Championship (she finished T-3).

Miyu Yamashita of Japan tees off on the 18th hole during the first round of the AIG Women's Open 2025 at Royal Porthcawl Golf Club on July 31, 2025 in Bridgend, Wales. (Photo by Oisin Keniry/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)

And then there's rookie Chisato Iwai, who has a twin sister Akie that's also a rookie on the LPGA, sitting T-4 at AIG. Who put together a steady, 3-under round with just one bogey on her scorecard.

Iwai captured her maiden LPGA title earlier this summer at the Riviera Maya Open, and has had an impressive record at every other major this season. She finished T-30 at Chevron, managed a T-22 at the U.S. Women's Open, scored her first top-five at a major at the KPMG Women's PGA, and she had a solid T-14 finish at Evian.

And you'll tend to notice, especially around the majors, a Japanese player finds themselves in contention. Takeda was T-2 at the USWO. Saigo captured her maiden LPGA title that also happened to be a major at Chevron—and the more seasoned players in Yuka Saso, Ayaka Furue and Hinako Shibuno have remained consistent throughout their careers.

In 2024, two of the five major winners were Japanese (Saso and Furue). Needless to say, this isn't a recent acceleration to success, but rather something to take notice and keep watch. Because perhaps the "dominant" force in women's golf isn't one person but rather a collective.

With three months to go until the 2025 International Crown, teams are beginning to shape up. The International Crown is similar to the Presidents Cup in men's golf. Like the Solheim and Ryder Cups only feature American and European golf, the International Crown and Presidents Cup are geared towards highlighting the global talent around golf.

The International Crown is a team match-play competition where the best female golfers from across the globe will compete in a four-day match-play event that will be held Oct. 23-26 at New Korea Country Club in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea.

The competing athletes will be determined by the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings published after the conclusion of the AIG Women’s Open. The top four ranked players from each pre-qualified country will qualify for their respective country’s team.

Seven countries have booked their spots: the United States, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, Sweden, Australia, the People’s Republic of China, and Japan.

As things stand right now, Japan feels like the team to beat. It would be Saigo, Takeda, Yamashita, and Furue—all of which who are 25 and under.

They're a young team, with plenty of talent, and two major winners—and a very real possibility of adding a third to the roster.