Happy Lytham Return for Revitalised Jeeno

Lytham, England: Revitalised after a well-earned holiday at home, Jeeno Thitikul is in relaxed mood as she attempts to break her Major championship duck this week at a venue she first encountered as a standout amateur.

The Thai first crossed swords with the famed links of Royal Lytham & St Annes at the AIG Women’s Open in 2018, a reward for emerging triumphant in the inaugural Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific (WAAP).

The memories are happy, even if she chooses not to remember her scores. “I was lucky enough to make the cut … and then I got to win the low amateur (Smyth Salver). I think I finished last, but I got the win because I was the only amateur who made the cut! I’m really looking forward to beating my amateur score this week,” joked Jeeno, a broad grin breaking out across her face.

Asked what advice she would have for Korean Yang Yun-seo, this year’s WAAP winner who’s in the starting line-up here, Jeeno said: “For all the amateurs, the experience is really important. I know they play kind of like carefree. They can do whatever they want – they don't have to care about anything, right?

“But (it’s important) for amateurs to be able to learn how to play (in links-style conditions), especially if it’s their aim one day to be on the LPGA Tour. It's great memories for young kids as amateurs. To be here as a professional is really different.”

Currently number two in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings, Jeeno has been a dominant force in the professional game over the past five years, winning multiple times on the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour and reaching the summit in the world rankings.

There is, however, one glaring omission from her glowing curriculum vitae – a Major championship.

And if she’s to end that drought it would be entirely appropriate for that to happen at the AIG Women’s Open, a championship for which she has a deep affinity, having made her debut in the event as a 14-year-old in 2017.

The signs are promising. Her form is good and so is her state of mind having posted top-10 finishes in the past two Majors, since when she savoured time in Thailand.

She said: “The last two (Major) events I feel like I found my game better than in the middle of the season. It definitely feels better. I spent my two weeks off in Thailand which has charged my energy. I saw my parents after a long stretch of golf which made it special.

“Being able to have the last two weeks off in Thailand has really helped settle my mindset. It was nice to have relaxing moments with friends and family and not really think about just golf.”

This week, though, it’s golf that's at the forefront of her mind – adapting to the windy conditions and staying out of the pot bunkers that dot the Lancashire links.

She said: “I think we have to avoid the bunkers. On every hole here they come into play. You have to enjoy the challenge and handle yourself mentally and physically. It's fun to have this challenge ... once a year!”