Atthaya Thitikul (, , ; born 20 February 2003), also Jeeno Thitikul, is a Thai

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who plays on the U.S.-based

LPGA Tour The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekly ...

and the

Ladies European Tour The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. Most of the players on the tour are European, with members from more than 40 countries internationally. Despite its name, the tour also has tournaments in A ...

. Until 2023, she was the youngest golfer ever to win a professional golf tournament at aged 14 years, 4 months and 19 days after winning the Ladies European Thailand Championship as an amateur on 9 July 2017. She was the number one ranked women's amateur golfer in the world for a total of 12 weeks, rising to the top on two occasions, the first time on 26 June 2019. On 27 March 2022, Thitikul won for the first time on the

at the JTBC Classic. While still age 19 in September 2022, Thitikul had two wins on the professional

and four wins on the

. On 31 October 2022, Thitikul became the number 1 ranked golfer in the

Women's World Golf Rankings The Women's World Golf Rankings, also known for sponsorship reasons as the Rolex Rankings, were introduced in February 2006. They are sanctioned by 12 women's golf tours and the organisations behind them: Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPG ...

, and was considered to be the fastest rising star in golf. On 10 November, she was named the 2022 LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year. In 2023, Thitikul won the Vare Trophy for the lowest scoring average on the LPGA Tour. In November 2024, she won the

CME Group Tour Championship The CME Group Tour Championship is a women's professional golf tournament, the season-ending event of the LPGA Tour. It succeeded the LPGA Tour Championship, which was played for two seasons in 2009 and 2010. From 2011 to 2013 the tournament w ...

and earned a prize of $4 million. This result, as well as her others during the

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

, earned her $6,059,309 on the LPGA tour in 2024. This set a new record for single-season earnings on the LPGA Tour, and both Thitikul and Nelly Korda (who earned $4,391,930) surpassed the previous record of $4,364,994 set by

Lorena Ochoa Lorena Ochoa Reyes (; born 15 November 1981) is a Mexican former professional golfer who played on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour from 2003 LPGA Tour, 2003 to 2010 LPGA Tour, 2010. She was the Women's World Golf Rankings#World number ones, top-ranked ...

during the 2007 season. As a result, Thitikul also led the 2024 LPGA money list.

Early life

Thitikul was born on 20 February 2003 in

Ban Pong Ban Pong (, ) is a district (''amphoe'') of Ratchaburi province, Thailand. It is in the northeast of the province. Geography Neighbouring districts are (from the north clockwise) Tha Muang district, Tha Muang and Tha Maka district, Tha Maka of Ka ...

Ratchaburi Ratchaburi (, ) or Rajburi, Rat Buri) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in western Thailand, capital of Ratchaburi Province. Ratchaburi town covers the entire ''tambon'' Na Mueang (หน้าเมือง) of Mueang Ratchaburi District. As o ...

to Montree Thitikul and Siriwan. Her introduction to golf came at a young age, with her father offering her the choice between golf and tennis at just six years old. She chose golf after watching pictures of both sports on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

. Thitikul honed her skills and graduated from Sarasas Witaed Nakhonpathom School in

Nakhon Pathom Nakhon Pathom (, ) is a city (''thesaban nakhon'') in central Thailand, the former capital of Nakhon Pathom province. One of the most important landmarks is the giant Phra Pathommachedi. The city is also home to Thailand's only Bhikkhuni temple W ...

. She is also known by her nickname, "Jeen" or "Jeeno".

Amateur career

2017

On 23 February, 3 days after her 14th birthday, Thitikul made her first appearance at the Honda LPGA Thailand on the

, where she finished 37th out of the 66 competitors. She had earned her place in the field when she finished runner-up in the Thailand Amateur Open the previous August when she was just 13 years and 6 months old. After competing in the LPGA event, she won the Taiwan Amateur Open in June. Her emergence onto the international golf scene came with her victory at Ladies European Thailand Championship on the

as an amateur on 9 July. This win made her the youngest person ever to win a professional golf tour event at age 14 years, 4 months and 19 days old. She held the record until April 2023, when Louise Uma Landgraf won the Terre Blanche Ladies Open aged 14 years, 2 months and 18 days. The previous record belonged to Canadian Brooke Henderson who won the 2012 Canadian Women's Tour aged 14 years, 9 months, and 3 days. Her amateur status meant that she could not claim the first prize of 45,000 euros for winning but it gave her the entries into both the

Women's British Open The Women's Open (originally known as the Women's British Open, and still widely referred to by that name outside the UK) is a major championship in women's professional golf. It is recognised by both the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tou ...

and the

Evian Championship The Evian Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as The Amundi Evian Championship, is a women's professional golf tournament in France, played at the Evian Resort Golf Club in Évian-les-Bains. It was originally held in June, move ...

in France. She missed the cut at the

British Open The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

by a shot but made the cut at the

, playing the final two rounds and finishing in 64th place. Thitikul also competed at the Junior Dutch Open in July. In the final round, she carded a course-record 8-under-par round to win the tournament by eight clear shots. In August, she won an individual gold medal and was part of the Thailand team that won another gold in the team event at the

Southeast Asian Games The Southeast Asian Games, commonly known as SEA Games is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 countries of Southeast Asia. The games are under the regulation of the Southeast Asian Games Federation with sup ...

in Malaysia.

2018

In February, Thitikul competed in the Women's Amateur Asia-Pacific Championship in Singapore, just as she turned 15. She was part of a four-way tie in the final round but went onto to win the title. Her victory earned her a place in the

HSBC Women's Champions The HSBC Women's World Championship is a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour first held in 2008. It was played on the Garden Course of the Tanah Merah Country Club in eastern Singapore, adjacent to Singapore Changi Airport fro ...

on the same course, plus entries into the

ANA Inspiration The Chevron Championship is a professional women's golf tournament. An event on the LPGA Tour, it is one of the tour's five major championships, and has traditionally been the first of the season since its elevation to major status in 1983. Sinc ...

at Mission Hills, California and for a place in the British Open, for a second year running. At the HSBC event, she was the joint youngest starter of the championship at 15 years and 9 months, the exact same age at which Singapore's Amanda Tan competed in 2014. She carded a bogey-free final round of six-under par 66 to finish tied for eighth. At the

in March, she finished in a tie for 30th place and earned low amateur honours. In August, she was the only amateur to make the cut at the Woman's British Open and won the Smyth Salver, low amateur award. On 15 September, she broke the course record at World Junior Girls Championship on Camelot Golf and Country Club in Ottawa with a score of 12-under-par 60 in the final round to win the title by 2 strokes. At the

2018 Summer Youth Olympics The 2018 Summer Youth Olympics (), officially known as the III Summer Youth Olympic Games, and commonly known as Buenos Aires 2018, were an international multi-sport event, sports, cultural, and educational event held from 6 to 18 October 2018 ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, Thitikul teamed with Vanchai Luangnitikul to win the mixed team gold medal for Thailand.

2019

On 24 June, Thitikul won the Ladies European Thailand Championship for the second time in three years. She finished with a five-under-par 67 to win by five shots from Esther Henseleit. Following her win, Thitikul was ranked 1st in the world on the women's

World Amateur Golf Ranking The World Amateur Golf Ranking for men was introduced by The R&A, the governing body of the sport of golf outside the United States and Mexico, on 23 January 2007. It is based on the results of over 2,600 amateur tournaments per year (and amateurs ...

on 26 June and then again from October 2019 until January 2020 before turning professional. In August, she won the back-to-back Smyth Salver, low amateur honour, at the

after finishing in a tie for 29th place at Woburn. In December, she represented Thailand at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. She won a bronze medal in the women's team event.

Professional career

2020

Thitikul began her professional career in January 2020, competing in several events held in Australia. One notable performance included a fourth-place finish at the Women’s NSW Open. The global

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

caused a pause in the golf season, but after its resumption in July, Thitikul secured her first professional victory at the Thai LPGA Tour's 3rd Singha-SAT Thai LPGA Championship. Her season culminated in five total wins on the Thai LPGA Tour, while securing the top spot on the tour's money list.

2021

In May, Thitikul received a sponsor's exemption to play in the Honda LPGA Thailand on the LPGA Tour, in which she finished second, one stroke behind

Ariya Jutanugarn Ariya Jutanugarn (, , ; born 23 November 1995) is a Thai professional golfer who plays on the American-based LPGA Tour. She was born in Bangkok. She is the first golfer, male or female, from Thailand to win a major championship. She became the nu ...

. Later, she began playing on the

. On 27 June, Thitikul claimed her third Ladies European Tour title, her first as a professional, at the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open. This win made her eligible to play in European major tournaments, the Evian Championship and the British Open in 2021. On 12 July, she moved into the top 100 on the

for the first time with a rank of 89, after finishing second at the Aramco Team Series – London losing to Marianne Skarpnord in a playoff. On 25 July, Thitikul recorded her best-ever finish at a major championship with fifth place at the 2021 Evian Championship, having a score of 14-under par 270, and boosting her world ranking to its highest ever position of 61st place. On 15 August, she achieved her seventh consecutive top-five place on a Ladies European Tour event by finishing tied for second in the Trust Golf Women's Scottish Open at Dumbarnie Links. Following the event, her world golf ranking moved to 35th place. On 11 September, Thitikul secured her fourth Ladies European Tour title, her second of the season, at the VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open. She overcame a four-shot deficit after 36 holes to win by one stroke over Marianne Skarpnord. As a result, her world ranking rose to 28th place, her highest ever. In November, Thitikul recorded three more top-ten finishes, including second place at the Aramco Saudi Ladies International, tied for sixth place at the Aramco Team Series – Jeddah, and third place at the season finale Andalucia Costa Del Sol Open De España. Her world ranking went into top-20 for the first time, rank 18. Thitikul won the Ladies European Tour Order of Merit and Rookie of the Year titles, following her two wins, three runner-ups, and nine additional top-ten finishes. She became the fourth player to win both awards in the same season and also became the youngest Order of Merit winner. She was also selected to earn the Players’ Player of the Year title. In December, Thitikul earned her card for the 2022

after finished third at the

qualifying school In professional golf, the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S.-based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the ...

2022

In early March, Thitikul tied for fourth place at the HSBC Women's World Championship in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

. This result elevated her world ranking by six spots to a career-high 14th, achieved just two weeks after her 19th birthday. The result also secured her largest professional tournament purse at $81,447.

First LPGA Tour victory

On 27 March, Thitikul won her first

tournament in her fifth start as a tour member at the JTBC Classic. She carded an 8-under-par 64 in the final round to come back from 6 shots behind after 54 holes to force a playoff, then beating Nanna Koerstz Madsen on the second playoff hole. She earned the $225,000 first prize, and became the youngest winner on the tour, aged 19 years and 35 days, since Brooke Henderson won the 2016 Portland Classic at age 18 years, 9 months, and 23 days. In September, she tied the tournament record with a 10-under-par 61 in the second round of the

Walmart NW Arkansas Championship The Walmart NW Arkansas Championship is an annual women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour in Rogers, Arkansas, north of Fayetteville, Arkansas, Fayetteville. First played in 2007 LPGA Tour, 2007, all editions of the tournament have ...

, taking a one-stroke lead into the final round. She went on to win her second LPGA title in a playoff against

Danielle Kang Danielle Grace Kang (born October 20, 1992) is an American professional golfer currently playing on the LPGA Tour. As an amateur, she won the U.S. Women's Amateur twice, in 2010 and 2011. She won the 2017 KPMG Women's PGA Championship, an LPGA ...

. By October, she rose to the number two spot in the world rankings. She broke the tournament record at the BMW Ladies Championship with an opening round of 63. On 31 October, Thitikul ascended to the world number one golfer for the first time. Notably, she became the second-youngest golfer to reach this milestone, after

Lydia Ko Dame Lydia Ko (born 24 April 1997) is a New Zealand professional golfer, member of the LPGA Hall of Fame, and the reigning Olympic champion. She first reached number one in the Women's World Golf Rankings on 2 February 2015 at of age, makin ...

, who achieved the feat at 17 years and nine months old in February 2015. Her achievements were further recognized with the LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year award on 10 November.

2023

Despite not securing an individual victory in the

2023 LPGA Tour The 2023 LPGA Tour was the 74th edition of the LPGA Tour, a series of professional golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world. The season began at the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions, Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament ...

season, Thitikul had 13 top-10 finishes in the 21 tournaments she entered, achieving a ninth-place ranking in the final Women's World Golf Rankings. Thitikul became the second Thai player (following

in 2018) to win the Vare Trophy, an award recognizing the player with the lowest scoring average for the season. Thitikul averaged 69.53 strokes over 75 rounds without winning a single tournament, marking the first time in 70 years that the Vare Trophy went to a non-winner. In December, Thitikul played on the Ladies Asian Tour, where she secured a 7-stroke victory at the Simone Asia Pacific Cup, claiming the $110,000 first prize. Additionally, she teamed up with Jaravee Boonchant to secure victory for Thailand in the team competition.

2024

In June, Thitikul played together with Ruoning Yin in a team to win the 2024 Dow Championship, which features a field of two-player teams competing in a team stroke-play format. On 19 November 2024, she secured first place in the Aon Risk Reward Challenge, being awarded its $1 million prize. After a third round 9-under-par score of 63 in the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, Thitikul was co-leader with Angel Yin at an overall score of 15 under par. In the final round after 16 holes, with Yin leading by two shots at 21 under par, Thitikul eagled the par-5 17th, tying Yin for the lead. At the par-4 18th hole, Thitikul hit her second shot to five feet, making the putt to win the tournament. Thitikul finished at 22 under par, shooting a final round 65 and winning by a stroke. She received a prize of $4 million.

2025

In February, Thitikul won the PIF Saudi Ladies International tournament of the 2025 Ladies European Tour at the

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

Golf Club. In May, she won the Mizuho Americas Open on the LPGA Tour.

Personal life

Friendship with Yin Ruoning

Thitikul is good friends with fellow LPGA Tour player

Yin Ruoning Yin Ruoning (born 28 September 2002) is a Chinese professional golfer who plays on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. At age 20, she won the 2023 Women's PGA Championship becoming the second women's major championship winner from China. Yin rose to num ...

, with their friendship beginning in November 2023 according to Yin. The pair went on to win the 2024 Dow Championship as a team. After the tournament, Thitikul described Yin as "just what I wanted erto be" in a partner and "like my best friend out there", and credited Yin with allowing her to feel comfortable while playing.

Amateur wins

*2016 Singapore Junior Golf Championship qualifier, TGA-Singha Junior Ranking #6, TGA-Singha Junior Ranking #1, TGA-Singha Junior Ranking #3, TGA-Singha Junior Ranking #4, Singha Thailand Junior World Golf Championship qualifier, Singha Thailand Junior World Championships *2017 Taiwan Amateur Championship, Dutch International Junior Open,

(women's individual), Santi Cup, Pondok Indah International Junior Championship *2018 National Team Ranking #2, Women's Amateur Asia-Pacific, National Team Ranking #4, Queen Sirikit Cup, National Team Ranking #5, World Junior Girls Championship *2019 National Team Ranking #4, Thailand Ladies Amateur Open, National Team Ranking #5, World Junior Girls Championship Source:

Professional wins (18)

LPGA Tour wins (5)

LPGA Tour playoff record (2–1)

Ladies European Tour wins (5)

Ladies European Tour playoff record (0–1)

Ladies Asian Tour wins (1)

Thai LPGA Tour wins (5)

Source:

Other wins (2)

*2021 Phoenix Ladies Classic *2023 Simone Asia Pacific Cup - team (with Jaravee Boonchant)

Results in LPGA majors

''Results not in chronological order.'' LA = low amateur
CUT = missed the half-way cut
NT = no tournament
T = tied

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 12 (2017 Evian – 2023 Chevron) *Longest streak of top-10s – 4 (2022 Women's PGA – 2023 Chevron)

Ladies European Tour career summary

LPGA Tour career summary

^ Official as of 8 June 2025 * Includes match play and other tournaments without a cut

World ranking

Position in

at the end of each calendar year. ^ As of 2 June 2025

Team appearances

Amateur * Patsy Hankins Trophy (representing Asia/Pacific): 2018 (winners) *

(representing Thailand):

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

(winners),

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

Youth Olympic Games Youth Olympic Games is an international multi-sport event for athletes aged 15 to 18 years old. Organized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consistent with ...

(representing Thailand):

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

(winners) * World Junior Girls Championship (representing Thailand): 2018, 2019 *

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...

(representing Thailand):

Amata Friendship Cup The Amata Friendship Cup is a team golf tournament for male and female professional and amateur golfers contested by teams representing Thailand and Japan. It is the first mixed-gender team event for professional and amateur golfers with a simila ...

(representing Thailand):

(winners) * Queen Sirikit Cup (representing Thailand): 2016, 2017, 2018 Professional *

International Crown The Hanwha LifePlus International Crown is a biennial women's professional team golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. Eight national teams of four players each (32 players in total) participate in the match play event. Beginning in 2025, the field ...

(representing Thailand):

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

(winners)

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thitikul, Atthaya

Atthaya Thitikul Atthaya Thitikul (, , ; born 20 February 2003), also Jeeno Thitikul, is a Thai professional golfer who plays on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour. Until 2023, she was the youngest golfer ever to win a professional golf tournam ...

Ladies European Tour golfers LPGA Tour golfers

Golfers at the 2024 Summer Olympics Golfers at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics

SEA Games medalists in golf Competitors at the 2017 SEA Games Competitors at the 2019 SEA Games Golfers at the 2018 Asian Games

2003 births Living people