10-year-old Japanese golfer closing in on 12th sponsor

By BERNIE WILSON
AP Sports Writer

EL CAJON, Calif. (AP) — Miroku Suto of Japan looks like a professional golfer, with the logos of her 11 sponsors splashed across her polo shirt, cap, bag and even her belt. Her parents say the deals are worth in the mid-six figures per year, with some contracts for 10 years. A 12th sponsorship is waiting when she returns to her home three hours outside of Tokyo. Suto has extreme confidence, saying through an interpreter she wants to become “a legend.” She has a ways to go. She’s only 10. She struggled this year in the 9-10 age group in the Junior World Golf Championships and finished tied for 17th.