For many top players, the Honda LPGA Thailand would be just another win. It has a solid field and is a good way to get some early season momentum, but it certainly isn’t one of the biggest events of the year. For the world No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul, that wasn’t the case.
Playing in front of her home crowd, and her mother, who had never seen her daughter win in person on the LPGA Tour, the Honda LPGA Thailand certainly took on another level for the 23-year-old superstar. Thitikul herself compared it to a major championship after the final round:
“I know it’s not that big event compared to the majors but for us and for me winning in my home country means a lot more to me, sometimes more than a major.”
There isn’t much Thitikul hasn’t accomplished. She’s won eight events on the LPGA Tour, two CME Group Tour Championships, a Player of the Year award and has a chance with another great year to become the all-time money leader in LPGA Tour history. She also helped her home country win the International Crown in 2023. The one thing that is missing, is a major championship.
Thitikul has had good chances too. Since the start of 2021, Jeeno has nine top-10 finishes in majors, including five top-five finishes. She had great opportunities in 2025, but a missed opportunity after a fantastic first round at KPMG, and an incredible comeback performance by Grace Kim at Evian kept her in the zero column there.
While the Evian wasn’t necessarily her fault, she has had a tendency to perform well in all four rounds at majors. Jeeno held the solo lead at the 2024 Chevron Championship heading into the weekend. She also had a strong, three-stroke lead through two rounds at KPMG in 2025, before finishing 76-75.
For any other sport, including men’s golf, it would be ridiculous to worry about this at only 23-years-old, but Thitikul has been so dominant for the past few years, it is time to start wondering when it will happen. Thitikul has won two CME Group Tour Championships, and has said her thought process going into those is very relaxed compared to other big events. Maybe, with this win that means so much to her, she has it figured out moving forward.
