Mamiko Higa is in contention to win her first major championship at the 2018 Women's British Open, and the 24-year-old from Japan is hanging in there with an up-and-coming crop of players vying for the title at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.
One of the members of Mamiko Higa's gallery in England is her fiance, and he's not hard to spot.
Mamiko Higa's fiance is Ikioi Shota, who is a professional, world-class Sumo wrestler also from Japan. The couple is reportedly set to be married on October 11, 2018, which just so happens to be their birthdays as well.
Mamiko Higa 🇯🇵 T1st with Pornanong Phatlum @RICOHWomensBrit
The 4x winner from the JLPGA is part of a #CelebrityCouple
Engaged to sumo wrestler Ikioi Shote. The couple are due to marry on their shared birthday of October 11 according to SumoNet #RWBO pic.twitter.com/vpbLA1FVvq
— Ladies European Tour (@LETgolf) August 4, 2018
Shota is seven years older than Higa, coming in at 31 years of age the day before they get married. They apparently met in 2015 at a sumo event, and from there, the couple took off. Shota apparently bought a $100,000 engagement ring for the JLPGA star.
Higa, who has finished inside the top five of the JLPGA money list in each of the last two seasons, made approximately $610,000 in 2017. In 2018, she has picked up her fourth-career win on the JLPGA circuit.
