Golfer Arimura to leave U.S., return to Japan

Chie Arimura has decided to leave the U.S. LPGA tour and shift her base back to Japan, the Japanese golfer said on her blog site on Tuesday.

In an entry posted a day earlier, Arimura cited the Kumamoto earthquake disaster in April as one of the reasons she opted to make the move following the May 9-15 Symetra Classic in North Carolina.

“I apologize to all the fans who looked forward to seeing me play in America,” Arimura wrote.

“I loved life in America and I can’t say I have no regrets, but what I want to do now is also what I feel like I should be doing, so I’d like to focus on that.”

The 28-year-old won 13 titles on the Japanese tour before she went to the United States in 2013. Arimura struggled as a non-seeded player, being able to take part in only eight tournaments last season.

Having lost her seed on the Japanese tour last season, she will play in the Suntory Ladies in Kobe next month on an invite of the organizers.

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