Jeeno Thitikul smashes golf legend's record with dominant CME Group Tour Championship win

Jeeno Thitikul has successfully defended her title at the CME Group Tour Championship, securing the $4 million first-place prize for the second year running at Tiburón Golf Club.

Thitikul, 22, also smashed a long-standing LPGA season scoring record set by golf legend Annika Sorenstam. 

The Thai superstar—and current World No. 1 in the Rolex Women’s Rankings—delivered a commanding performance all week in Naples, Florida. 

Across four rounds, she dropped just three shots and kept every card in the 60s, highlighted by a sparkling 63 on Friday and an equally impressive 64 on Saturday.

She then closed things out with a steady 68 to see out a four-shot victory over her compatriot Pajaree Anannarukarn. 

The LPGA superstar ended the week at 26-under par, one shot shy of the tournament record set by Amy Yang in 2023. 

World No.2 Nelly Korda finished in solo third on 20-under par. 

Despite winning seven times on the LPGA in 2024, Korda incredibly ended 2025 without a victory. 

Thitikul becomes only the second player in history to win back-to-back CME Group Tour Championship titles. 

She is, however, the first to claim the $4 million winner’s cheque in consecutive seasons, with the record purse only increasing to $11 million ahead of the 2024 edition.

Thitikul's dominant week also saw her rewrite the LPGA Tour record books, breaking the single-season scoring average mark that had stood since 2002—previously set at 68.697 by the legendary Sorenstam. 

Jeeno's scoring average on the LPGA this season ended at 68.681.

Why is Atthaya known as Jeeno?

Thitikul is called "Jeeno" because her mother originally gave her the nickname "Jeen" due to her father having Chinese ancestry, which translates to "Chinese people" in Thai. 

Her coach later added the "o" to create "Jeeno," and the golfer adopted it as her professional name because it is easier for people to remember than "Atthaya".