Yeah, it’s as I suspected. Ooi! Tonbo has kept its mojo working this season, but it really it at its best when Igaiga and Tonbo are together. I love them individually but they just have a great relationship – so layered, so endearing. I fully agree with both generations of Udou men on this one. As Hajime said, Igaiga is the one who should be teaching Tonbo. And as Yashiro said, Igaiga really is a father to Tonbo. I get why the plot has taken the course (no pun intended) it has. But it sure would be nice to get Igaiga living in Kumamoto somehow.

Part of this comes down to Igarashi-san knowing Tonbo’s swing better than anyone. But I think he’s also a natural teacher with a keen eye for swing details – and by no means does that apply to every professional. Igaiga approves of Hajime not having really done anything to Tonbo’s swing – out of fear that by messing with it, he’d wreck her entire game. But that’s not a long-term solution.

Igaiga immediately sets to work (just as Hinoki’s father is finishing up his nightly abuse session). He spots that Tonbo’s eye-line is off because of too much hitting off mats – which he corrects by ingenious use of her visor’s bill. He sees that she’s been lifting her left big toe like she would to stabilize her stance on Gon-ji’s boat – by telling her to hit barefoot. This he corrects by telling her to imagine her humane fish-killing tool being stuck through her toe (she balks at the idea). And most of all he encourages her to be herself and reminds her that everyone on Hinoshima has her back. The positivity flowing from Igarashi to Tonbo is so palpable you can almost cut it with a knife.

Obviously this bolsters Tonbo’s spirit in a big way heading into the third round. But that’s not all she has in her corner. Igaiga predicts that the wind will be up – which Hajime laughs at because it wasn’t in the forecast, and Tonbo because he sounds like Gon-ji. Igaiga has truly become an island child though – he proves dead right. And wind is Tonbo’s best friend. She’s played in high winds literally since she picked up a club, and her ad hoc approach to stances, spins, and ball flights is ideally suited to mastering windy conditions. Tsubura is used to it too, and sees it as a potential edge. Ema hits it high with a lot of spin, which puts her at a natural disadvantage.

And then there’s Hinoki. Before anything else it must be understood that she should be disqualified because she signed an incorrect scorecard after not taking her penalty. No one else knows this (apart from us) but she does – and it’s hard to imagine that not playing on her mind. Golf in the wind requires full and intense concentration to begin with (though less for a freak like Tonbo, who finds it a blast). I’d also imagine Hinoki’s game – that beautiful, elegant swing and the majestic ball flight it generates – would be susceptible to the effects of heavy wind.

In short, I think conditions could hardly favor Tonbo more. Igaiga is the wind beneath her wings, and the wind allows her game to soar. She’s away from the other three favorites, which is better for her psyche. And all the pressure has shifted from her – she who’s not expected to have a chance – to them. I still don’t know how the format here works – Tiger Dad mentioned making the “playoff”, which I’m guessing means match-play rounds on the final day, though maybe it’s just a cut after the third round (normally it would be after the second) – but in truth I have no idea. Whatever comes next, I expect the events of Day 3 to put Tonbo right in the thick of it.