Jeeno Thitikul shocks Angel Yin to win CME Group Tour Championship

Angel Yin had a grip on the LPGA’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship since Friday afternoon, however ending off a win for the biggest prize in ladies’s golf isn’t purported to be straightforward.

Particularly when a former World No. 1 like Jeeno Thitikul is chasing you down.

Yin, the most effective putters on the LPGA Tour all season and had been even higher this week in Naples, seemed like she had locked up the large $4 million payday when she took a two-shot result in the seventeenth tee and knocked her third shot on the par-5 inside 5 ft.

However, right away, the momentum that had been in Yin’s favor seemingly all weekend swung again towards Thitikul. The 21-year-old knocked it on the seventeenth in two and drained the eagle putt from about 15 ft earlier than Yin pushed her birdie effort.

Then on 18, Thitikul threw a dart for an method shot, touchdown her ball in need of the opening and rolling it out to about 5 ft which she transformed for birdie and a one-shot win at 22 beneath. She went eagle-birdie on the ultimate two holes at Tiburon Golf Membership for the second day in a row.

“Really, I don’t know what’s occur to me on 17 and 18. I imply, like I actually make a birdie on 17, which is giving me a great likelihood,” Thitikul mentioned afterward. “However like having eagle, it’s greater than I can ask for. After which hitting actually, actually good second shot on 18 and gap the putt, it’s similar to, , all of the onerous work that I’ve been, it’s similar to repay.”

It’s Thitikul’s second win of the season, however her first particular person win on the LPGA Tour since her breakthrough 2022 Rookie of the Yr marketing campaign. Her different win this season got here in June on the Dow Championship whereas teamed with Ruoning Yin.

That’s additionally to not say Thitkul, who now has 4 LPGA titles, had been struggling both as she captured the Vare Trophy, the LPGA scoring title, in 2023 earlier than coping with a wrist damage earlier this season.

Thitkul was 4 again of Yin heading into the weekend however eradicated the hole on Saturday with a five-under-par end over her final six holes. She even opened up a two-shot lead early Sunday earlier than Yin caught her once more at 16 beneath with a two-shot swing on the 4th gap.

Yin appeared like she was pulling away as soon as the again 9 started, making lengthy birdie putts at 10, 12 and 16, whereas including one other birdie at 14. However the miss at 17 loomed expensive for the 26-year-old. It’s her second runner-up this season after a breakout season in 2023 the place she received her first LPGA title and completed runner-up on the Chevron Championship.

Thitikul takes residence the $4 million first place prize, the largest prize in ladies’s golf, and in addition received the $1 million for profitable the season-long Aon Threat Reward Problem, which she clinched earlier than the week began. The $5 million from this week alone is sort of as a lot as Thitkul’s profession earnings of $5.8 million getting into the week and greater than the $4.2 million Nelly Korda, who received seven occasions together with a significant, received all season.

“I simply thought like at that simply one other alternative that’s going via my life one time in my profession,” Thitikul mentioned. “I positively prefer it’s not life or loss of life, so I simply stored my 100% if I win it’s going to be actually good, but when not, it’s simply going to be one event that I give it 100% that I’ve.”

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