Jeeno Thitikul came from behind to win the LPGA Shanghai Championship.
Thitikul surged from four strokes down through five holes to advance to a playoff with Minami Katsu before hitting another stunning shot on the fifth playoff hole to become the first two-time LPGA tournament winner of the season.
No. 1 Thitikul shot 63, including 7 birdies and 1 eagle. The Thai player’s 24-under 264 closed what appeared to be a comfortable margin over overnight leader Katsu of Japan. Katsu started the day two strokes ahead and extended that to four strokes after the 13th.
But the Thai player had birdies on the 14th, 15th and 16th and then a stunning eagle that tied the score as the ball bounced along the mottled 17th green at Shanghai Qizhong Garden Golf Club.
Garth (65) responded with a birdie on the 17th hole, but had another birdie opportunity on the last hole to make up for the victory, but the ball slipped through the hole and advanced to overtime.
Thitikul was back in contention on the final day, coming back from four strokes down with five holes to play.
Par on the first four playoff holes rotated between the 18th and 10th holes, with Katsu making two birdie putts to win, but narrowly missing both holes.
The deadlock was broken on the fifth hole of the playoffs when Thitikul’s dazzling approach landed the ball three feet away and Katsu’s second shot fell short of the green on the par-4 18th.
Katsu’s birdie chip was impressive but missed, leaving Thitikul with a simple birdie putt to cap off a stunning victory nearly two years after losing a spectacular nine-hole playoff to Celine Boutier at the LPGA Malaysia.
Lee Min-ji, who won her third major title at the Women’s PGA Championship last June, shot a 68 on Sunday to finish at 19-under 269 and eventually finished third as her bid for third place faltered midway through the round.
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