Patty Tavatanakit is back on top of an LPGA event for the first time in nearly three years as she won her home country’s Honda LPGA Thailand event Sunday.
Her victory brought tears and emotion to the forefront as she ended her LPGA drought.
Yet, this is Tavatanakit’s second straight victory after she earned a seven-stroke win last week at the Aramco Saudi Ladies International.
Tavatanakit carded a final round 5-under 67, finishing at 21-under and winning by one shot. This tournament was the first time since her 2021 victory that she posted scores in the 60s in all four rounds.
When her final putt on 18 dropped, a number of fellow LPGA players met her on the green to soak her in water and celebrate.
“It was a lot of emotions. It was joy. It was — I felt so proud. And a little bit of — I felt a little tired, too,” she said. “But overall, I had so much pressure on me today just playing in front of the home crowd, and I was able to do that. It was unbelievable. Like, I still couldn’t believe I did that today.”
It was a touching moment for her after overcoming so much since her last win on the LPGA Tour.
That year, she earned her first LPGA win and major championship at the ANA Inspiration. Following that victory, she recorded eight T7 or better finishes, won the Rolex ANNIKA Major award, and won the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year.
Things looked so bright for the former UCLA Bruin standout.
However, the following season she suffered a massive sophomore slump. Tavatanakit landed four top-15 finishes to start the year, but things went awry from there. She missed seven cuts in eight starts from June to mid-September before injuries forced her to withdraw from the LPGA Mediheal Championship, ultimately ending her season.
Last season appeared to be another challenging one for her, but she regrouped, reached the Tour Championship, and finished 54th in the Race to the CME Globe.
Ahead of the Honda LPGA Thailand event, Tavatanakit told the media it had been a long time since she’d played this well. The 24-year-old had to rally this week, especially after earning a victory. It’s hard to win back-to-back, but she dug deep.
“It’s been a dream come true winning last week in Saudi and again this week in my home country,” Tavatanakit said. “I was outside the ropes at one point in my life and now I’m inside, get to play with all these amazing girls. They’re the best in the world. To be able to close it is pretty surreal right now.”
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, be sure to follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.
