Jeeno Thitikul emerged victorious for the second time this season at the CME Group Tour Championship. Thitikul finished 22-under-par to take home a historic $4 million winner’s check, marking it as the largest first-place prize in all of women’s golf. Thitikul battled back and forth all day long with American Angel Yin, who would finish second, shooting 21-under. Yin claimed her second runner-up finish of the season.
Thitikul and Yin would enter the final round tied at 15-under. Thitikul began to pull away, starting out hot with a birdie on the 1st and 3rd holes. Yin tied things back up with a birdie on the 4th hole, before Thitikul reclaimed the lead on the 7th hole. The two golfers continued to exchange made putts and move between 1st and 2nd place over the next few holes.
An eagle by Thitikul on the 17th hole again put her in a tie with Angel Yin. This meant a champion would not be crowned until the final hole. Yin just missed her birdie putt, as it grazed the edge of the hole, setting up Thitikul with a chance to win. Thitikul seized the opportunity and finished out the round with a short birdie putt to claim victory. With her win, Thitikul becomes the Race to the CME Globe champion.
“I don’t know what happened to me on 17 and 18. I really made a birdie on 17, which is giving me a good chance. But having an eagle, it’s more than I can ask for,” said Thitikul. “And then hitting a really, really good second shot on 18 and hole the putt, it’s just like, all the hard work that I’ve been, it’s just like pay off.”
Yin, while disappointed in her runner-up finish, claimed her highest finish of the 2024 season. Yin also took home a large check, with winnings totaling $1 million. However for Yin, her performance was about way more than just the money.
“That I’m pretty awesome,” said Yin when asked what she learned about herself this year. “That I cannot walk and finish second. I’ve learned that I just need to believe in myself, and that’s what I did. That’s why I had my friend in the bag. And then that’s it. Just need to keep doing that, believe in myself.”
Two-time CME Group Tour Champion Lydia Ko would finish in third at 17-under and Rolex Women’s Golf World No. 1 Nelly Korda would finish in a tie for fifth at 15-under with Narin An.
The CME Group Tour Championship also marked the final time on tour for three golfers, including a Team USA mainstay in Lexi Thompson. Thompson finished tied for 49th at 2-under. She has competed on the LPGA Tour since 2012 and has won 11 championships during that span, including a major championship win at the 2014 Chevron Championship. Thompson has represented Team USA at seven Solheim Cups (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024), four Hanwha LIFEPLUS International Crowns (2014, 2016, 2018, 2023), and two Olympic games (Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020).
“It was very emotional. Really wasn’t until I got to No. 9 for some reason. Kind of all hit me,” says Thompson. “Yeah, it’s just always a special week regardless if it was my last tournament as a full time schedule or not. I always have so much family and friends and the fans are unbelievable here. It’s kind of a home town event being from Florida so it always held a special place in my heart. Yeah, it’s a memory that I’ll always cherish forever, always coming here. It’s not the game that I wanted to play, but there are more important things.”
Ally Ewing and Marina Alex also called it a career this weekend. Both Ewing and Alex have represented Team USA at the Solheim Cup, Ewing appeared in four (2019, 2021, 2023, 2024) and Alex appeared in the 2019 Solheim Cup. Ewing finished tied for 16th and has been an LPGA member since 2016, while Alex finished tied for 12th and has been on tour since 2013.
The LPGA Tour is back in Naples, Florida, in December alongside their PGA Tour partners for the Grant Thornton Invitational on the 13th.
