Jersey City, N.J. — Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul pulled back many challenges on Sunday, playing a bogey-free on the final 27 holes at Liberty National, closing out Celine Butier at the Mizuho America Open with a 3-under 69 with a four-shot victory.
Thitikul, who won the race to CME gloves and a $4 million award last season, won the first time this year for the fifth time in his LPGA Tour career.
Nelly Korda is about to win the championship for the first time this year. She was within the range of a Chiticle shot until she got into the hazard on the par 4 9th hole and took a bogey. Korda played the back nine with two bogeys and no birdie, and it was a downward spiral from there, as it wasn’t the rest of the factors.
The final challenge came from Boutier, who posed to catch a Thai player on the 15th hole when he hit an approach up to 10 feet. Thitikul faced a tough par save from the green left bunker, having to lift his foot up the slope and clear another bunker to the back pin.
Thitikul pulled out a shot completely into 3 feet to save PAR. Not only did she miss her birdie chances, she missed a 30-inch comeback putt and made a bogey. Instead of a two-shot swing and lead tie, Boutier reappeared with three holes in three holes.
Jeeno Thitikul collects the fifth LPGA tour title at Mizuho Americas Open 🏆 pic.twitter.com/llibcjyn06
-LPGA (@LPGA) May 11, 2025
On the 16th, Boutier missed an 8-foot birdie putt, and Thitikul made a putt from 7 feet and stayed behind for a three-shot. Thitikul finished the tournament with a 10-foot birdie putt on hole 17, closing out a clean par with a par save on the 18th.
“I know a lot of putts didn’t drop on the front nine, but I’m trying to do my best,” Thitikul said. “I was telling myself, ‘Please hold on, it’s coming, it’s coming.’ That’s what I told myself today. ”
Thitikul finished at 17 under 271, earning $450,000, pushing over $1 million a year and collecting the lead in the race to CME Globe.
Boutier shot 72 to finish second, followed by Carlota Ciganda (70) and Andrea Lee (72).
Thitikul didn’t create many putts on the front nine, but like with the back nine on Saturday, she stayed ahead by not making bogeys. She made birdies in the opening hole, and her best job was the six irons from back pin to back pin to feed the ball up to five feet using the slope.
It was one of two birdies in the round. That’s where Korda has retreated. The number one player in women’s golf made three birdies on the front nine. The last one reached within one shot on a par 5 hole. It was the last birdie for Korda for the rest of the round. She tied for fifth place with 73.
The tournament, hosted by Michelle We West, paired with players from the American Junior Golf Association and LPGA Pros. Aphrodite Deng, who lives about 20 minutes away, won the AJGA category using modified Stableford scoring.