Atthaya Attuned for Nostalgic Singapore Return

Singapore: World number three Atthaya Thitikul is relishing the chance to finish the 2022 season on a high by capturing her first Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour title at next week’s inaugural Hana Financial Group Singapore Women’s Open.

The 19-year-old will be aiming to live upto her billing as the highest-ranked player in the 102-woman field at the Tanah Merah Country Club (TMCC) from December 9-11, where she faces strong competition from a host of KLPGA heavyweights spearheaded by Park Min-ji, the 2022 Money List winner, and LPGA Tour star Yealimi Noh.

“It was a really great year for me. A lot of good things happened this year,” said Atthaya, who has high expectations for her Tanah Merah appearance. “If I can do it (win), it would be great. But if not, I’m sure it's still going to be a great event for me.

“We usually see a lot of great Korean players on the LPGA Tour, so it’s without doubt that the KLPGA Tour is a very strong and competitive circuit. The KLPGA Tour comprises many talented players. If you want to finish on top, then you have to play really solid golf.”

Atthaya is no stranger to competing in Singapore, which has been a favourite hunting ground since her amateur days.

Runner-up at the Singapore Junior Championship in 2016, the Thai returned to the Island Republic in 2018 and won the inaugural Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific at Sentosa Golf Club.

At the same venue, she also enjoyed top-eight finishes in the HSBC Women’s Champions in 2018 and last year.

“I always love coming back to Singapore. The weather and everything else is similar to Thailand. It’s like competing back home,” said Atthaya, who is backed by the Hana Financial Group (HFG).

In 2022, Atthaya’s rise to the summit of the women’s game continued in her first season on the LPGA Tour, bagging two titles and posting top-10s on 14 other occasions.

Atthaya secured her breakthrough victory at the JTBC Classic presented by Barbasol in March, propelling her into the world’s top five for the first time. It took her only six months more to return to the winner’s circle.

With her victory at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, Atthaya moved to number one in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings, a position she held for two weeks before being usurped by American Nelly Korda.

Although finishing second to New Zealand’s Lydia Ko in the Race to CME Globe points race as well as the Vare Trophy, which is awarded to the player with the lowest scoring average for the year, Atthyaa had the consolation of claiming the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year award.

In 2021, Atthaya was the Ladies European Tour (LET) number one – four years after creating history by becoming the youngest golfer to win a professional tournament at the age 14 years, four months and 19 days, triumphing in the Ladies European Thailand Championship while still an amateur.

Atthaya is grateful to the Hana Financial Group (HFG) for its strong backing in the early stages of her professional career.

She said: “I’m so lucky and humbled to be a part of the HFG family. Being a Thai, I never imagined I would be getting support from a Korean conglomerate. But HFG placed their faith and saw something in me. I can’t thank HFG enough for their help and support.”

Meanwhile, Princess Mary Superal of the Philippines will also head to TMCC seeking to replicate the giant-killing feat that crowned her the Simone Asia-Pacific Cup winner in Jakarta in August.

The 25-year-old upstaged some of the world’s biggest names including Kiwi Ko and Koreans Ryu So-yeon and Kim Hyo-joo in the Ladies Asian Tour (LAT) event – her first title since turning professional in 2016.

“I’m just happy to participate in this tournament and excited to play with all of these fantastic players,” said Superal.