PM congratulates ‘Jeeno’ Atthaya for winning LPGA Tour title
PM Anutin congratulates Atthaya ‘Jeeno’ Thitikul for retaining the LPGA CME Group Tour Championship and securing Player of the Year.
Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on Monday offered his congratulations to Atthaya “Jeeno” Thitikul after she secured back-to-back victories at the LPGA CME Group Tour Championship.
“Congratulations to Nong Jeeno Atthaya for winning the LPGA title for the second consecutive year. Truly wonderful news,” he wrote on Facebook.
Atthaya, the world No.1, claimed the season-ending LPGA Tour title in Florida for the second year in a row after finishing the final round on November 23 with a four-under-par, bringing her total to 26-under. The 22-year-old collected the US$4 million purse—nearly 130 million baht—alongside the Player of the Year award.
Her win makes her only the second golfer to defend this title, following former world No.1 Ko Jin-young, who achieved the feat in 2020 and 2021. Atthaya also ends the season as the LPGA player with the most wins—three in total—after earlier triumphs at the Mizuho Americas Open and the Buick LPGA Shanghai, bringing her career LPGA tally to seven titles.
Along with retaining her crown, her outstanding season performance secured two major awards: the Rolex Player of the Year and the Vare Trophy for the lowest scoring average. She is the second Thai golfer to win the Rolex award, after Ariya Jutanugarn in 2016 and 2018. This year’s Vare Trophy marks her second, following her 2023 win.
Other Thai golfers also posted strong finishes. Pajaree Anannarukarn, who qualified as the final (60th) entrant, delivered an impressive six-under final round to finish second on 22-under, earning US$1 million.
Paphangkorn Tavatanakit closed with a total of 14-under to finish tied for seventh, taking home US$137,000. Ariya Jutanugarn finished tied for 33rd on nine-under (US$67,000), while Chanettee Wannasaen placed 60th on six-over, earning US$55,000.
