LONDON: Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit capped off a perfect four days at the Aramco Saudi Ladies International in Riyadh, scoring seven-under-par on the final day to claim a first victory since her Major win as a rookie at the 2021 ANA Inspiration.
The Thai star’s win made sure she took home the top prize of $750,000 from the record-breaking $5 million prize purse — the largest on the Ladies European Tour outside of the Majors and still the only professional golf tournament to match the prize fund of the men’s equivalent.
Tavatanakit shrugged off any question of being chased down on the final day at Riyadh Golf Club as she sunk an eagle put on the fifth hole to propel her clear of her rivals Esther Henseleit and Charley Hull early on.
After that ANA Inspiration win in 2021, the journey back to the top of the leaderboard has been a hard one for the Thai sensation, and she has spoken frankly about her mental health challenges.
“It’s been really difficult, but those struggles gave me a lot of strength,” Tavatanakit said. “I learned a lot, and I grew a lot from it as well. Looking back, I’m grateful for all the moments, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”
She continued: “You go down (mentally), and you’re down there to go up one day, and that’s kind of true with golf and life. I’m definitely getting the highs this week, and then we’ll see what the future holds.
“But today, I went out there like I came to play golf, and I had a lot of fun today. Regardless of the outcome, I told myself to enjoy it, and I really did.”
Heinseleit of Germany followed up her blistering 65 on Day 3 with a solid three-under-par on the final day, which secured her second place and a check for $450,000.
There was a late charge for Japan’s Minami Katsu, the eight-time LPGA tour of Japan winner who recorded her first professional win at the age of just 15 in 2014.
Katsu followed up a front nine of four-under-par, with a run of four birdies to begin her back nine, before finishing seven-under-par after a bogey on the 16th hole.
Meanwhile, England’s Hull was unable to capitalize on her 68 on Day 3, but a respectable two-under-par was enough to lock in a tied third-placed finish.
