Tag: Oak Valley Country Club

LPGA: Rookie Atthaya Thitikul leads, searching for third win and move to No. 1 in the world at BMW Ladies Championship

Atthaya Thitikul would move to No. 1 in the world with a win.

It has been a season to remember for 19-year-old Atthaya Thitikul.

The LPGA rookie from Thailand sits third in the season-long Race to CME Globe points race, having recorded two LPGA wins and one Ladies European Tour win. She’s ranked second in the Rolex rankings

In South Korea, Thitikul is again proving she’s among the game’s elite as a teenager. She fired a third-round 5-under 67 to move into first at the BMW Ladies Championship at Oak Valley Country Club. She leads Lydia Ko and Andrea Lee by one shot and Lilia Vu by two heading into Sunday’s final round. It’s a packed leaderboard, but five birdies on the back nine for Thitikul give her the advantage heading to Sunday.

“I tried to keep making birdies on the last nine holes because I don’t have that much birdies on the front nine,” Thitikul said. “Just trying to, like, put my ball in the position that I can make an easy birdie.”

Thitikul is at 15 under, and if she gets win No. 3, it would move her to No. 1 in the world. In fact, a solo fourth or better would elevate her to the top spot.

“To be honest, I don’t really care about the ranking, she said. “I don’t really care to be like No. 1 in the world at all because I play golf because I want to take care of my family. I want to feed my family. Whatever I am is fine. Even my family, they have a good life already. Ranking is not that important for me for real.”

Jin Young Ko, who is the current No. 1 and the defending champion of the event, withdrew before the third round. She was in last place (80-79) coming off an injury.

Lydia Ko, who’s at 14 under after a third-round 66, is increasing her case to win the Vare Trophy for lowest scoring average. But it’s safe to say even she’s impressed by how the teenager has been dominating on tour.

“The golf at that Atthaya has been played has been absolutely amazing, and I think she’s going to run to be World No. 1,” Ko said.

For Ne Yeon Choi, who is playing in her final LPGA event, it was a special third round. She recorded an ace.

Yet the field is chasing Thitikul, who’s closing in on becoming the top-ranked female golfer in the world. But ask Thitikul, and the possible achievement is just a number.

“I mean, to be honest, I don’t really care about the ranking. I don’t really care to be like No. 1 in the world at all because I play golf because I want to take care of my family,” Thirikul said. “Ranking is not that important for me for real.”

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LPGA: Andrea Lee leads BMW by two in South Korea; World No. 1’s shocking struggles continue

“I’m just playing really carefree golf, and I’m really relaxed out there. Just having fun.”

Andrea Lee’s first time playing golf in South Korea couldn’t go better if she scripted it. Lee remains bogey-free after 36 holes at the BMW Ladies Championship where she leads by two at 12 under over longtime friend Lilia Vu, hotshot rookie Atthaya Thitikul and 16-year-old amateur Minsol Kim.

Lee, who birdied three of her last four holes, has missed only two greens and two fairways in her matching rounds of 66. The former Stanford star said she’s used to the hilly terrain of Oak Valley Country Club having grown up at Palos Verdes Golf Club in California.

“I think it just gave me so much confidence after that win in Portland,” she said, “and I’m just playing really carefree golf, and I’m really relaxed out there. Just having fun. I don’t feel the pressure anymore to get that first win. I feel comfortable being atop the leaderboards now, and you know, hopefully I can just keep it rolling.”

Lee, 24, saw her 91-year-old grandfather for the first time in three years this week and looks forward to having him come out this weekend.

“The Koreans, they love golf,” she said. “They are so passionate, emotional about it. So it’s great to feed off of their energy. They are definitely rooting for all the Korean players out here. I’m Korean-American, so I feel like they are rooting for me, too, and it’s nice to have that.”

Lilia Vu of the USA watches her shot after teeing off during the second round of the BMW Ladies Championship golf tournament at Oak Valley Country Club in Wonju on October 21, 2022. (Photo by Jung Yeon-je / AFP) (Photo by JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images)

Vu bounced back after her first bogey of the tournament on the 14th with an eagle on the par-5 15th. A prolific winner at UCLA, Vu finished third in Portland the week that Lee won and has six top-10 finishes this season. This is also her first time competing in South Korea, and she spent Friday alongside Lee and 2020 U.S. Women’s Open champion A Lim Kim.

“I mean, definitely a little bit of like an adjustment for me to get used to because (when) she would hit it pretty close, everyone would start yelling,” said Vu of the crowd’s reaction to Kim. “I hit a couple shots to three feet today. Maybe a half-clap from my parents. Yeah, so it’s kind of different, but it’s fun. They are very spirited here.”

There are a number of scenarios in which Thitikul will rise to No. 1 in the world this week. A victory would get her there. She can also finish as low as fourth and still climb to No. 1 if Jin Young Ko finishes solo 29th or worse and Minjee Lee does not win.

World No. 1 Ko opened with an 80 that included a 10 on the 18th hole. Friday wasn’t much better. A double-bogey and eight bogeys led Ko to shoot 79, one day after carding the worst round of her LPGA career. She did card an eagle on the 15th.

Ko hit seven fairways and 10 greens in the second round and is currently last in a field of 78. This marks Ko’s first event back since taking two months off to heal an injured left wrist.

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Atthaya Thitikul opens with record-setting 63 at LPGA’s BMW in South Korea; No. 1 Jin Young Ko shoots 80

A 19-year-old rookie holds a one-shot lead over a 16-year-old amateur at BMW in South Korea.

Atthaya Thitikul says she’s not thinking about awards, but her opening 9-under 63 set a tournament record at the BMW Ladies Championship at Oak Valley Country Club in South Korea and certainly added fuel to the Rolex Player of the Year conversation.

It stood in stark contrast to World No. 1 Jin Young Ko’s opening 80. Ko took two months off to heal a bum wrist and struggled mightily in her first round back, making a 10 on the par-5 18th after a wayward tee shot. She also recorded six bogeys.

“Golf can be like this,” Ko told South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency. “Things don’t always go the way I want them to. I did the best I could. Whatever the final score is, it’s on me to accept that and to figure out where I can get better. I will try to stay positive to get ready for the remaining rounds.”

Ko, who won this tournament last year on a different course, said she didn’t want to make any excuses with her wrist, saying her goal is to wrap up the tournament playing pain-free. She’s tied for 76th in a field of 78. There is no cut.

Jin Young Ko of South Korea prepares to play her second shot out of the rough on the 18th fairway during the first round of the BMW Ladies Championship at Oak Valley Country Club on October 20, 2022 in Wonju, South Korea. (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

In 2017, Sung Hyun Park became the first player since Nancy Lopez (1978) to win both the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Award and Player of the Year award in the same season.

Could Thitikul be the next?

She leads the Rookie of the Year race and trails Minjee Lee by 25 points. A victory is worth 30 points.

Thitikul looks to win her third title of the season this week at the BMW, which would make her the No. 1 player in the Rolex Rankings, overtaking Jin Young Ko. She could also ascend to the top if she finishes solo fourth or better and No. 3 Minjee Lee doesn’t win.

Thitikul’s bogey-free 63 included a hole-out for eagle on the par-4 13th from 102 yards.

“I had a great round today, really solid round today,” said Thitikul, “especially had eagles. First time I holed out in a competition round.”

Thitikul, 19, holds a one-stroke lead over 16-year-old amateur Minsol Kim, who shot 64, making seven birdies in a span of eight holes.

“When I was younger, I actually came as a gallery (member) to watch the BMW Ladies Championship, and I remember thinking that Sung Hyun Park was really cool,” said Kim. “So today to play side-by-side with her, think it was a real honor. Initially, I was really nervous (today) but after the first hole, I thought that it was quite fun, and so I wasn’t really feeling the pressure, and I was enjoying myself. I think that really helped me today.”

World No. 1 Jin Young Ko has a habit of winning after long breaks. Can she do it again this week in South Korea?

Jin Young Ko has made a habit of coming out strong after long breaks from competition.

Jin Young Ko returns to action on the LPGA this week for the first time since late August. Top-ranked Ko took time off to rehabilitate a nagging left wrist injury. While Ko is defending champion at this week’s BMW Ladies Championship, the event is being held at a new location: Oak Valley Country Club in Wonju, South Korea.

“I was not able to practice as much as I thought I would,” said Ko of her time away, “but when I did have the time to practice, I really focused on those sessions.

“I’m really into yoga these days, and I went to the yoga center learned yoga and that helped me train on my mental side. For the last two months, basically I’ve been kind of doing that, and I’m very happy to be in the competition.”

Six of the top 10 players in the world are in the field this week, including rookie Atthaya Thitikul (2) Minjee Lee (3), Lydia Ko (5), Nasa Hataoka (9) and Hyo-Joo Kim (10).

Ko said she took plenty of breaks while practicing to protect her wrist and also took part in acupuncture treatments.

“During the past five to six weeks while I was in Korea,” said Ko, “the weather was warm and so it wasn’t so painful, but today it got a little colder. The temperature is lower and the grass is firmer, so that may impact my wrist some. But I will not give up and I will continue to do my best.”

Last year, Ko won the CME Group Tour Championship while dealing with so much wrist pain that she couldn’t even warm up before each round.

BMW Ladies Championship 2021
Jin Young Ko kisses the winner’s trophy after the final round of the BMW Ladies Championship at LPGA International Busan on October 24, 2021 in Busan, South Korea. (Photo: Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

Ko has made a habit of coming out strong after long breaks from competition. She famously won her first LPGA start as a member at the 2018 ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open.

In 2020, Ko came back from an extended break during the COVID-19 pandemic to play her way into the CME Group Tour Championship in only four starts and win the season-ending title.

Last year, Ko skipped the AIG Women’s British Open to work on her swing and came back after more than a month away to win her first start back at the Portland Classic. She’d go on to win three more times to close out the season.

Earlier this year, Ko came back from an extended offseason to win her first start at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in March.

A 13-time winner on the LPGA, Ko last cracked the top five on tour in June at the U.S. Women’s Open. She’s been ranked No. 1 for 38 consecutive weeks and 144 total.

“I would be lying if I said that there was absolutely no pressure when it comes to maintaining that ranking,” said Ko, “but I have to say I am more interested right now in practicing because I want to be more satisfied with my golf instead of the title, the No. 1 player,” said Ko. “I’m surrounded by very talented players, though I never thought initially that ranking, that title was forever.”

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