＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳 | 団塊世代が雑学や面白い話を発信しています
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49）さん / X
<Addition on 7/14/2023> She should get rid of her “distractions” such as swing modifications and putter grip changes, and return to her starting point.
Hinako Shibuno has been in a slump since her 7th win on tour (including 1 win on the US Tour) at the “Mitsubishi Electric Hisako Higuchi Ladies Golf Tournament” in October 2021. She failed to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open the other day at 14 over. On the first day of this week’s Dana Open, she was also 3-over on the first day, and was a full 10 shots off the lead in 129th place, which was a long way off the pace.
Having failed to qualify for the last four rounds in a row, even securing a seeding is now in jeopardy, and it seems that only his ambition is flailing about.
The media reports on her every match with high expectations, and in interviews, she often talks about how confident she is, but there are no results like “winning” or “competing for the championship” at all.
Recently, Nasa Hataoka (5 wins on the Japan Tour, 6 wins on the U.S. Tour) and Sakura Koiwai (9 wins on the Japan Tour), who are also members of the “Golden Generation,” Miyuu Yamashita (10 wins on the Japan Tour), of the “New Century Generation,” and Ayaka Furue (8 wins on the Japan Tour, 1 win on the U.S. Tour) of the “Platinum Generation” have been very active.
Ryo Ishikawa has also been in a slump due to the failure of swing modification. I still think it will be difficult for him to make a comeback unless he goes back to his roots and returns to a conventional swing (including the grip on his putter) as well as strengthening his mental training.
Hinako Shibuno is a leading player of the “Golden Generation” but has not won since her seventh tour victory (including one overseas major) in October 2021.
She became a household name after winning the Women’s British Open Golf, an overseas major in August 2019, earning her the nickname “Smiling Cinderella” from the international media.
Even though she had won her first Tour event at a domestic major (World Ladies Championship Salonpas Cup) in May 2019, she was not very well known before that and many people probably did not even know how to read her name (as I did).
I am a little concerned because she is still in a slump with sluggish results because the “swing modification” she has been working on since the beginning of the year 2021 has not been successful.
I am an amateur, but I think there are the following problems (issues?).
（１）She’s in bad shape due to swing modifications.
Swing modification is not a bad thing, as it is a sign of ambition, but if it fails, there is a great risk that your swing, which you have built up over time, will fall apart and you will fall into a maze.
I heard that she is under the tutelage of Ryo Ishikawa, who also tried the American Tour and suffered a long slump after failing in his efforts to modify his swing to reliably increase distance without putting strain on his back.
Why don’t you return to your old swing and see how you get on?
I have also heard that she “seems to be fascinated with Ryo Ishikawa”. She may have romantic feelings for him, but I think it is better not to get too much into him to the extent that she is mind-controlled.
（２）She’s without a coach right now and has no one close by to advise her.
She left (graduated?) from her coach Sho Aoki, who was her mentor since 2017. Therefore, she is now without a coach (*).
(*) According to an article in the Weekly Golf Digest of 3/29/2023, Hinako Shibuno has returned to Coach Sho Aoki, whom she once graduated from, in hopes of a revival. I hope this will make her feel bright and positive again and show her “Shibuno smile” like before.
Why not take the plunge and seek advice from Masashi Ozaki, aka “Jumbo Ozaki”?
Jumbo Ozaki” is a legend in the golf world and has a reputation not only for his distance, but also for his small tricks.
Another option would be to take advice from Ai Miyazato, who has played on the U.S. Women’s Tour and experienced a slump in her swing modification.
（３) She is not ready to join the U.S. Women’s Tour yet.
In the women’s golf world, there are senior players like Ayako Okamoto and Ai Miyazato who have been very successful on the U.S. Women’s Tour, and there are also players like Nasa Hataoka who are currently active.
In her first full-fledged entry on the U.S. Women’s Tour this season, she competed at the top of the leaderboard early on and quickly secured her seeding for next season, but since then she has been in a slump.
I think it is necessary for her to change her policy to focus on the domestic tour for the next season and participate in overseas majors.
（４）She needs mental training.
Aside from her technical golf problems, she seems to be in a state of “self-doubt” these days. Even her smile seems to me to be a “forced fake smile” instead of the “naturally bubbly smile” that she used to have.
I strongly recommend that she get a mental trainer and do mental training.
If winning the Women’s British Open is taking a toll on her mind, it would be better for her to relax and just say, “That win was beginner’s luck.
Ai Miyazato also underwent mental training after falling into a slump, and she is now teaching the know-how she gained to junior players in Japan.
She has two top-10 finishes this season and is ranked 32nd in the “Mercedes Ranking”. She participated in the final round of the season, the “JLPGA Tour Championship Ricoh Cup” to be held at Miyazaki Country Club from November 24 to 27, and tied for 10th place. We wish her “Shibuko Smile” will come back as soon as possible.
In the wake of the new coronavirus outbreak in 2020, golf became popular as a sport that can be enjoyed without being dense. There has been a clear increase in the number of young people seen at driving ranges and golf courses. This momentum will not stop in 2022, and in fact seems to be accelerating.
It used to be called an “old man’s sport” and shunned by the younger generation, but now it is rather a “fashionable sport” supported by young people and women. I believe that the recent success of young Japanese professional women golfers is one of the reasons for this.
On August 4, 2019, Hinako Shibuno (then 20), one of the “golden generation” of young female golfers, won the Women’s British Open Golf.
With this, it seems that the wind of follow-through has begun to blow again in the Japanese women’s professional golf scene for the first time since Ai Miyazato. Until then, the Korean teams had always overwhelmed the Japanese players, and Korean players snatched the championship every week, but from 2020-21, Japanese women’s professional golfers have clearly started to show remarkable success.
In the world of women’s professional golf today, players in their early 20s, called the “Golden Generation (born between April 2, 1998 and April 1, 1999)” such as Sakura Koiwai, Hinako Shibuno, Erika Hara, Minami Katsu, Hina Aragaki, Saki Asai, Yui Kawamoto, and Momoko Osato, and the “Platinum Generation (Millennium Generation)” such as Ayaka Furue, Rieru Shibusawa, Yuna Nishimura, Yuuka Yasuda, and Yuuri Yoshida have been very successful.
The younger generation of promising players such as Miyuu Yamashita, Yuuka Saso, and Mao Saigo are beginning to be called the “Third Generation” or “New Century Generation.
For this, see “Women’s Professional Golf is Interesting Again! The Golden Generation, Platinum Generation, and New Century Generation are playing a big role.” ”The battle for women’s golf prize money ranking is fierce! The battle for seeding rights is fierce! Please take a look at the following articles for more details.
「女子プロゴルフが再び面白い！黄金世代・プラチナ世代・新世紀世代が大活躍」
「女子ゴルフ賞金ランキング争いは熾烈！シード権争いはメルセデスランキング。」
We would like to introduce you to one of the most popular members of the “Golden Generation,” Hinako Shibuno.
１．Super cute picture of Hinako Shibuno
２．About Hinako Shibuno
Hinako Shibuno (November 15, 1998- ) was born in Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture. She graduated from Sakuyo High School in Okayama Prefecture. Her height is 167 cm, weight 62 kg, and blood type is AB. Belongs to Suntory.
His hobbies are calligraphy and softball, and his favorite colors are blue and pink. She is best friends with Momoko Osato, who is in the same grade as her in the professional game.
Born the second of three sisters to a father, Satoru, a national team athlete in the shot put and discus, and a mother, Nobuko, a javelin thrower, she began competing at the age of eight and was also passionate about softball in elementary school. She was active as a pitcher, and when she entered junior high school, she was the only girl to join the softball team.
She has been dedicated to golf since the second year of junior high school, and passed her second attempt at the professional test in 2018.
Won her first Tour title at the 2019 World Ladies Salonpas Cup, a domestic major, at the age of 20 years 178 days, breaking the record of 20 years 273 days set by Chung In-ji (Korea) in 2003, who was the youngest V in the tournament at the time.
She won the AIG Women’s British Open, an overseas major, in her first appearance. She became the second Japanese player in 42 years to win a major title, following Hisako Higuchi at the 1977 U.S. Women’s PGA Championship. She became a national heroine, and “Smiling Cinderella” was nominated for the “Most Popular Words” award.
In 2020, she was the sole leader going into the final day of the U.S. Women’s Open, which was held in December, and came close to winning her second major, but lost by a narrow 4th place finish.
In 2021, she won the Stanley Ladies for the first time in a year and 11 months, and three weeks later won the Hisako Higuchi Mitsubishi Electric Ladies for her sixth victory on the domestic tour. Her nickname is “Shibuko.