Asian American woman has historic victory at Pebble Beach

SCREEN CAPTURE

US Open champ Allisen Corpuz is congratulated by her parents, Marcos and May.

Allisen Corpuz smoothly parred the famous 18th hole of the legendary Pebble Beach Golf Links to secure a three-shot victory and a $2-million check last weekend. 

A packed grandstand broke out in chants of “U-S-A! U-S-A!” as Corpuz became the first American to win the US Women’s Open since 2016, the first woman to win at Pebble Beach, and certainly, the first golfer from Hawaii of Korean and Filipino descent to hoist the Women's Open trophy over her head.

When asked by the post tourney press conference July 9, she was asked what made her fall in love with the game at such a young age, Corpuz gave an amusingly honest answer: “Honestly, I sucked. I just wanted to get better. I think that’s just kind of who I am, like as a person. Just if something can be done better, that’s how I want to do it.”

In 2008, Corpuz surpassed Michelle Wie West as the youngest to ever qualify for the US Women’s Amateur Public Links at 10 years, 3 months and 9 days. Comparisons naturally followed.

Corpuz started her golf career when she was attending Punahou School, the same high school where fellow pro-golfer Michelle Wie West and Barack Obama studied.

It was fitting that at the same tourney that Wie West announced her retirement, Corpuz's profile rose to the top of women's golf.

“I’ve never really compared myself to her,” said Corpuz of Wie West. “I’ve always wanted to make my own name. “She’s just served as a really big inspiration.”

Corpuz, who won the Open by three shots over Charley Hull (66) and Jiyai Shin (68), credited her Filipino father, Marcos, for introducing her to the sport she’s come to love.

“I started [golf] when I was four, or five years old. My parents actually live on Kapolei golf course — on the left side… So yeah, my dad has always been a really big golf fan and just got us into it really young,” she said.

At age 6, the young Allisen told her father, “If you want me to play golf, don’t scold me.”

Her parents, Marcos, a dentist, and May were not overbearing, but even at such a young age, Corpuz knew that she was intrinsically motivated to get better. No one needed to push her.

In 2008, at the tender age of 10-years old, she made headlines by becoming the youngest qualifier in US Women’s Amateur Public Links history, a record previously held by Wie West.

She attended Punahou School, the same high school where Wie West and former President Barack Obama studied. At 12, she realized that she might be able to make a living playing golf.

The 25-year-old graduated from USC, where she mastered in Global Supply Chain Management and earned a graduate certificate in Business Analytics. 

In only her second year on the LPGA tour, Corpuz entered the tournament last week 29th in the world but largely overlooked. She ended the week with a congratulatory tweet from former President Obama.

“Congratulations to fellow Hawaiian Allisen Corpuz for winning the U.S. Women’s Open!” tweeted Obama. “You make us all proud – and look forward to a round at Kapolei!”

“Yeah, Barack and Michelle are the two Punahou alum that I get talked to about the most,” said Corpuz. 

In an understatement, she said: “I mean, he’s done a lot in his career. Yeah, that’s really special.”

Now they get to talk about Allisen.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @eduardodiok on Threads.net, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at his blog Views From the Edge.

Naomi Osaka wins the U.S. Open for a second time; Tamir Rice remembered by the champ

Naomi Osaka won the U.S. Open finals in a a come from behind contest but her win on the court wasn't the only victory she enjoyed. 

By making it to the finals, she got to wear her seventh and final mask calling attention to the killings of unarmed Blacks by police and so-called vigilantes. The mask bore the name of Tamir Rice, who was just 12 years old when he was shot at a park in Cleveland, Ohio, by Officer Timothy Loehmann on Nov. 22, 2014. Rice died the following day.

Loehmann was fired for shooting the youngster but not charged for the killing Tamire who had a toy gun in a public park.

Other names printed on Osaka’s U.S. Open masks worn in earlier matches were Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, Trayvon Martin, George Floyd and Philando Castile.

RELATED: Osaka talks about her campaign against social injustice

Before the U.S. Open, Osaka said its was sad that her seven masks were not enough for the number of victims killed by police and other white vigilantes who feared Black people.

After her win over Victoria Azarenko, 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 in the toughest match she faced in the Open, she was asked if her crusade was effective. 

Osaka responded:"Well, ‘What was the message that you got?’ was more the question. I feel like the point is to make people start talking. 

“I’ve been inside of the bubble, so I’m not really sure what’s really going on in the outside world," she said. "All I can tell is what’s going on is on social media. And for me, I feel like the more retweets it gets — that’s so lame, but the more people talk about it.”

Osaka's third Grand Slam victory didn't come easy. She had to come from behind after losing the first set 1-6. The next two sets were closer than the scores indicated, marked by numerous ads and several game breaks by both players.

In their third set, Osaka was ahead 4-1 and had several chances to close out the set but Azarenko kept fighting back. It was 4-3 before Osaka could win another game.

Osaka won the U.S. Open in 2018 in an upset victory over Serena Williams. She later won the Australian Open and was ranked No. 1 for several months after losing several minor tournaments and a change of coaches.

Naomi Osaka's second U.S. Open title is her third Grand Slam title.

Naomi Osaka will wear her 7th mask remembering victims of racial injustice as she qualifies for the U.S. Open finals

SCREEN CAPTURE / FACEBOOK

Enroute to her semi-final victory, Naomi Osaka wore a mask with Philando Castile's name.

It took three hard-fought sets but Naomi Osaka fought off Jennifer Brady, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3, to advance to the finals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament and she gets another chance to wear her final face-mask bringing the nation's attention to racial injustice.

Osaka, ranked No. 4, throughout the tournament has been wearing face-masks with the names of African Americans who died at the hands of police or self-anointed vigilantes. Friday, her mask had the name of Philando Castile, 29, who was shot dead by an officer during a routine traffic stop in St. Anthony, Minnesota.

Castile, who warned the officer he had a license for a firearm, was shot as he reached for an ID, according to his girlfriend who was in the car with him. Officer Jeronimo Yanez was later found not guilty of second-degree manslaughter and also acquitted of two counts of intentional discharge of a firearm that endangers safety. However, he was fired from the St. Antony Police Dept.

Osaka had seven masks made for the U.S. Open, enough, she said, to reach the finals. In the women's final Saturday, she will wear her seventh mask when she enters the Arthur Ash court in Queens, New York City to play against 25-year old Victoria Azarenka, who beat 3rd-ranked Serena WIlliams, 39, Friday evening, 1-6, 6-3, 6-3.

The normally shy and reticent Osaka is using her social media platform and her celebrity status to remind her fans of those African Americans who had died unjustly in recent years.

The week before the U.S. Open, she joined other professional athletes who boycotted play by temporarily withdrawing from the Western & Southern Open, a warmup to the U.S. Open As a result, the entire tournament paused for a day before returning to play a day later.

She returns to center court, two years after she upset Williams on the same court to win her first Grand Slam tournament. A few months later, she won the Australian Open and gained No. 1 ranking for a few months before relinquishing the title.

Despite her drop in ranking, the 22-year old, playing for Japan where she was born, is now tennis' highest-paid women's player.

Osaka appears to be maturing and finding her independent voice and is no longer to speak out. In another sign of independence, she has moved from Boca Raton, Florida where her family lives to Los Angeles where she lives with rapper YBN Cordae. 

She and Cordae traveled to Minneapolis and joined the protests last June in the wake of the killing of another African American man, George Floyd, while he was being arrested. Osaka wore George Floyd's name on her mask Tuesday in her quarter-finals match.

"I'm not sure what the world would look like if everything was peaceful, but I would hope that people help each other in times of great need," she told CNN Sports. "I would also hope that the older generation isn't scared to help the younger generation. For me, the biggest thing is I don't want people younger than me to suffer through the things I have to suffer through." 

Naomi Osaka talks about about why she's speaking out; qualifies for the U.S. Open's semifinals;

"Being 'not racist' is not enough. We have to be anti-racist."

--NAOMI OSAKA

Without telling anybody -- not even her agent-manager or coach -- Naomi Osaka went to Minneapolis to join the demonstrations caused by the death of George Floyd. She went  with her boyfriend, the musician and rapper YBN Cordae. 

“Whenever I have a chance to see something for myself, I jump on it,” Osaka, told the Wall St. Journal. “I’ve always watched protests on TV, and I never had the chance to go because I was always playing tennis.”

Marching with the protesters and listening to the speakers, it was the first time she had taken a break from playing tennis since she began training at a very young age, she says.

“Everyone was so passionate,” Osaka tells the Journal. “There were constantly things going on and people talking to each other about who’s organizing this rally and things like that. I thought it was really powerful.”

What she learned from those few days in Minneapolis: "Being 'not racist' is not enough. We have to be anti-racist."

Floyd's May 25 death while being arrested was videotaped by onlookers to the point Floyd, a Black man, lost consciousness from having a policeman's knee pinning him by the neck. His death and the viral video re-energized the Black Lives Matter movement and sparked worldwide demonstrations against racial injustice that continues to this day and has become an issue in the 2020 Presidential race.

Tuesday (Sept. 8), before and after her match at the U.S. Open, she wore a face mask with George Floyd's name on it. It's the fifth mask she's worn during the tournament. She has two more masks to wear -- enough to reach the finals.

She beat Shelby Rogers, 6-3, 6-4, in the quarterfinals, an opponent she has never beaten in their three previous encounters. Osaka's win at the U.S. Open sets up a semifinal match against Jennifer Brady, 25, from Pennsylvania.

In keeping with the COVID-19 social distance protocols, the tourney is being played without fans in attendance.

In interviews after her match with Rogers, she was visibly moved talking about her personal demonstration to bring attention to the deaths of African Americans, which she says, "didn't have to happen."

She had received messages from the families of Trayvon Martin and Ahmaud Arbery, two of the names stenciled on masks that she wore in her earlier matches. She also wore masks with Breonna Taylor and Elijah McClain.

"I don't know. I feel like I'm a vessel, at this point, and in order to spread awareness and, hopefully, it's not going to dull the pain, but hopefully I can, you know, help with anything that they need," said Osaka.

"It means a lot; I feel like they're so strong, I'm not sure what I would be able to do if I was in their position," she said when talking about the families.

In an August article for Esquire, Osaka writes why she's decided to use her platform for the cause of social justice.

In the past few months, I’ve re-evaluated what’s actually important in my life. It’s a reset that perhaps I greatly needed. I asked myself, “If I couldn’t play tennis, what could I be doing to make a difference?” I decided it was time to speak up...for every George, there is a Brionna, a Michael, a Rayshard. The sad list goes on. That’s just the tragedies captured on camera. I remember watching the outrage at Michael Brown’s case in 2014, and nothing has really changed since. Black people have been fighting this oppression alone for so many years and progress has been fleeting at best. Being “not racist” is not enough. We have to be anti-racist.

Osaka will play Brady in semi-final match on the US Open courts in Queens, New York City on Thursday, Sept.10.

U.S. Open: Naomi Osaka continues to win and deliver her message

Naomi Osaka has a point to make at the U.S. Open.

Sunday, Naomi Osaka continued her campaign to bring attention to racial injustice by walking onto the court wearing a mask with Trayvon Martin's name stenciled on it. Then she played some tennis at the U.S. Open.

"I remember Trayvon’s death clearly," Osaka tweeted. "I remember being a kid and just feeling scared.I know his death wasn’t the first but for me it was the one that opened my eyes to what was going on. To see the same things happening over and over still is sad. Things have to change."

On February 26, 2012, Martin, an African American teen walking home from a trip to a convenience store, was shot dead by George Zimmerman, a Neighborhood Watch volunteer taken to patrolling the neighborhood of the Retreat at Twin Lakes in Sanford, Florida.

After calling police and ignoring orders not to engage Martin, Zimmerman later claimed to have shot the unarmed 17-year-old out of self-defense during a physical altercation.

When police initially opted not to arrest Zimmerman, the case sparked nationwide protests and ignited national debates about racial profiling and self-defense laws. Zimmerman later was charged with second-degree murder; following a high-profile trial that riveted America, he was acquitted of the charges against him.

Osaka won her match against 14th seed Anett Kontaveit in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4. Playing for Japan, Osaka moves on to the quarterfinals to meet the United States' Shelby Rogers on Tuesday (Sept. 8).

She won the U.S. Open in 2018 by beating the ten-champion Serena Williams. For a few months, she was ranked No. 1 in the world and has become the highest paid women's tennis player.

Osaka, who is of Haitian and Japanese descent, had to become a Japanese citizen and chose to represent Japan in international play even though she grew up in the U.S. and continues to live and train in Florida.

The 22-year old Osaka, who plays for Japan, is waging a one-woman campaign to bring attention to racial injustice. She had masks made with the names of African Americans who were killed recently. Besides Trayvon Martin, the three earlier masks that he wore bore the names of Breonna Taylor, Elijah Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery. She made seven masks; enough to reach the finals if she wins the next two matches.

Naomi Osaka cruises in US Open; wears mask remembering slain Elijah McClain

Naomi Osaka wore the mask as she entered the court and put it back on aafter the matach

If Naomi Osaka continues to play at the US Open like she did Wednesday, she might have a chance to wear all seven masks that have the names of African Americans who died while in being arrested by police.

Wednesday, her mask had the name of Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old Colorado man who died when police administered a choke-hold that cuts off blood flow and after an EMT gave him a shot to calm him down. 

Police had stopped him as he walked home from a convenience store. He had not commit any crime. A resident's 911 call reported him as suspicious.

“When I heard about his story it was very hurtful,” Osaka explained when asked by reporters.  

“I still don’t think his name is very put out there compared to, like, George Floyd or Breonna Taylor. For me, today was very special in the way that I wanted to represent him very well,” she said.

In the US Open's second round, Osaka easily dispatched Italy's Camila Giorgi, 6-1, 6-2 in a game that featured hard volleying from the baseline, a style that hard-hitting Osaka prefers.

“I definitely played, I think, the best out of the two weeks that I’ve been here today,” said the 4th-ranked Osaka.

WIth her win, Osaka advances to the 3rd round against Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk, currently raned 137th in the world. They will meet Friday, Sept. 3.

The 22-year old tennis star began her demonstrations of support for the police killings of unarmed black people last week when she announced she would withdraw from the semi-finals of the Western & Southern Open at the same tennis complex as the US Open is being held.

Her withdrawal was inspired by the boycott by players in the NBA, WNBA and MLB and later joined by the National Hockey League.

She said has seven masks prepared for the US Open. In the first round match, she wore a mask with the name of Breonna Taylor, who was shot dead in her own apartment by police.

Osaka said that its too bad her seven masks isn't enough to list all the deaths of back people at the hands of the police.

Naomi Osaka wins first round match at U.S. Open - in her own style

SCREEN CAPTURE

Naomi Osaka wore a mask during warm-ups but took it off during play.

Naomi Osaka arrived at the U.S. Open for her opening-round match on Monday wearing a black facemask with Breonna Taylor's name in white letters. honoring the former Louisville EMT who was shot and killed by police while she was sleeping in her apartment earlier this year.

"I'm aware that tennis is watched all over the world, and maybe there is someone that doesn't know Breonna Taylor's story," Osaka told reporters. "Maybe they'll like Google it or something. For me, just spreading awareness. I feel like the more people know the story, then the more interesting or interested they'll become in it."

The 4th-ranked tenni player beat Misaki Doi 6-2, 5-7, 6-2, although not fully  recovered from a hamstring injury she suffered in Friday's semi-final match at the Western & Southern Open.

During the Western & Southern tourney, she withdrew on Wednesday as other professional athletes in the NBA, MLB, and WNBA refused to play in protest of the police and vigilante violence against demonstrators in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Tourney officials decided to halt all matches on Thursday in support of the athletes but resumed play on Friday.

The 22-year old player, who was ranked No. 1 two years ago, said she brought seven masks, -- enough to reach the finals.

Osaka, who is of Haitian and Japanese descent, plays for Japan where she was born  though she lives and trains in the U.S.Her decision to withdraw from last week's tournament was her way to protest the “continued genocide of Black people at the hand of the police.”

Her next opponent is Italy’s Camila Giorgi, who she'll play Wednesday (Sept. 2).