Miranda Wang defeated world number one Jeeno Thitikul to win the FM Championship by one shot. This is Wang’s first win on the LPGA Tour after joining the tour this year.
After a round of 65 (-7) on Saturday, Wang started the final round with a three-stroke lead over America’s Rose Zhang and Korea’s Sei Young Kim. She held a four-stroke lead over Thitikul and Andrea Lee. Wang started hot with two birdies in her first three holes, ultimately scoring a 34 (-2) for the front nine. Although she started with a large lead, Thitikul was the one to watch as she caught up to Wang with a front nine of 31 (-3).
The two were a must-watch down the stretch, but a costly bogey on the 17th hole proved decisive for Thitikul, causing her to fall back. Wang says it was a dream to win on the LPGA Tour.
“It’s a dream come true. Winning on the LPGA has been my dream since the day I started playing golf, which was when I was eight years old. I was watching LPGA tournaments on TV,” she said. “I was like oh, that’s I want to do and I want to be on this tour. I want to win out there. So I finally did this. Very proud of myself.”
Thitikul will end this week with her third runner-up of the season and her tenth top 10 of the season. She was the only player to score all four rounds in the 60’s this week. Although she did not win, Thitikul remains confident going towards the end of the season.
“I’m feeling pretty good. I think all the work that I have put in on the, you know, week off, all I’m trying to do is trying to go in the right direction. And I feel really confident with my irons right now; also, my putting.”
Wang is the 11th first-time player and seventh rookie on tour to win this season.
With her win, Wang earned $615,000 in prize money and 500 points in the Race to CME Globe. She moved into 30th place.
The LPGA Tour is off next week but will return at the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G the weekend of September 11th. Lydia Ko will look to defend her title after her win at the tournament last year.
Disclaimer: Quotations have been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
