Tee shot finds penalty area on 17th, leading to bogey

Thitikul birdies same hole to seize sole lead

Yoon In-na plays a shot on the 17th hole during the final round of the LPGA Tour's Lotte Championship at Hoakalei Country Club in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). Yoon, who had shared the lead through the previous hole, sent her tee shot into a penalty area on the 17th and made bogey, costing her a chance at victory. [AFP]
Yoon In-na plays a shot on the 17th hole during the final round of the LPGA Tour's Lotte Championship at Hoakalei Country Club in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). Yoon, who had shared the lead through the previous hole, sent her tee shot into a penalty area on the 17th and made bogey, costing her a chance at victory. [AFP]

Yoon In-na came agonizingly close to her first LPGA Tour victory, only to fall short at the final hurdle.

Yoon carded a 4-under-par 68 in the final round of the Lotte Championship ($3 million purse) on Monday (Korean Standard Time) at Hoakalei Country Club (par 72) in Ewa Beach, Oahu, Hawaii, posting seven birdies against three bogeys.

Her total of 18-under-par 270 left her three strokes behind winner Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand, who finished at 21-under 267, as Yoon settled for sole second place.

Yoon, who made her LPGA Tour debut in 2025, was chasing her first win but instead recorded her second runner-up finish of the season, following the KPMG Women's PGA Championship earlier this year.

Starting the final round three strokes off the lead, Yoon mounted a fierce charge on the front nine, going 4 under through five birdies and one bogey. She birdied holes 1, 2, 4 and 5, dropped a shot at the par-4 8th, then recovered with a birdie at the par-3 9th.

Yoon added another birdie at the par-4 10th to close to within one stroke of Thitikul, before a bogey at the par-4 14th widened the gap again. Both players birdied the par-3 15th. The contest swung dramatically at the par-4 16th, where Thitikul's tee shot found a penalty area and she made double bogey while Yoon saved par, leaving the two tied at 19 under.

The turning point came at the par-4 17th, where Yoon's tee shot curved right into a penalty area. After taking a one-stroke penalty, she missed the green with her third shot and finished with a bogey. Thitikul, meanwhile, drained a birdie putt from about 10 meters to surge two ahead. She then birdied the par-5 18th to seal a three-stroke victory.

Jeeno Thitikul (left) embraces runner-up Yoon In-na after clinching victory on the 18th hole during the final round of the LPGA Tour's Lotte Championship at Hoakalei Country Club in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). [AFP]
Jeeno Thitikul (left) embraces runner-up Yoon In-na after clinching victory on the 18th hole during the final round of the LPGA Tour's Lotte Championship at Hoakalei Country Club in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, on Monday (Korean Standard Time). [AFP]

The victory gave Thitikul her 11th career LPGA Tour title and her fourth of the season, along with a winner's check of $450,000.

Kim A-lim, the 2024 champion, made a promising start, picking up an eagle and two birdies over the first five holes, but could not sustain the momentum and dropped consecutive bogeys later in the round. She finished at 14-under 274, tied for seventh.

Lee Jeong-eun, born in 1988, tied for 10th at 13-under 275, while Lim Jin-hee and Choi Hye-jin both finished at 12-under 276, tied for 13th.


yjc@heraldcorp.com