NAPLES — Few in women's golf have had as good a year as LPGA rising superstar Jeeno Thitikul. The 22-year-old Thai captured her second consecutive CME Group Tour Championship Nov. 23 while clinching Player of the Year and the Vare Trophy for the season's lowest scoring average.
And she broke Annika Sorenstam's single-season scoring average record and for the second time pocketed the $4 million check.
Not a bad year for the No. 1 player in women's golf.
But one who can challenge her for different reasons is Craig Kessler, who just more than four months ago because the LPGA's 10th commissioner.
Kessler, the former PGA of America CEO, has revealed a plan unlike any of his predecessors to transform the LPGA as it wraps up its 75th anniversary. Primarily, more exposure through a formative television plan, an innovative schedule and an emphasis on marketing the product.
And already he's seeing results.
“If you looked at my phone, you would see hundreds of texts between our players and me, constant phone calls; visiting a handful of them in their home cities over lunch or around a round of golf,” Kessler said. “I've played in half a dozen or so pro-ams with many of our athletes and sponsors.
"There's no one way to build trust. It's the combination of many things and it's not just me doing this. Our entire leadership team spends hours a week because that's the most important ingredient if we're going to unlock the LPGA’s potential.”
Before the start of the Tour Championship, which was held at Tiberon Golf Club, Kessler offered a "peek under the hood," sharing his "flywheel" on how to improve the product that has seriously lagged behind its male counterpart, the PGA Tour, while facing challenges not unlike that of most women's sports.
At the top of the flywheel is improved broadcast quality "kickstarting the engine driving long term success." That leads to attracting more fans that stick to the product; which spins to growth in title demand, purses, media rights; which boosts "positive incremental net cash flow;" which is reinvested back into the product.
And round and round.
"I mentioned wanting to be an organization that people are proud to partner with, and one of the characteristics of that is we have to do what we say we will do," Kessler said. "The first priority is executing on all of the good news that we've already announced. As we think about elevating the quality of the broadcast, we have to deliver for our fans.
"Right behind that is building deep connections between fans and athletes, building superstars. I think we have examples of where that's starting to happen, but frankly we've got a long way to go and you'll see our team leaning into that in a big way."
For the first time since Golf Channel began televising the LPGA in 1995, the year the network launched, every LPGA round will be shown live, with select weekend rounds on CNBC. That coverage will include a 50 percent increase in cameras and slow-motion angles, triple the microphones and putting an emphasis on more player storytelling with more walk-and-talks.
"For us to finally get our shot at having live TV and for people investing in our product out here has been amazing," said Bradenton's Nelly Korda, the sports biggest American star and No. 2 in the world.
Jeeno Thitikul, 22, is LPGA's biggest budding superstar
When it comes to developing more stars, Kessler cites three groups of players, the most successful or the stars, the most marketable, and the most willing to do anything to help.
Kessler is looking for those who intersect those three circles.
“We have so much raw potential to work with and that potential in some cases could apply globally," he said. "And then we also have opportunities to create regional superstars, folks who really connect with their local or national audience.
"The exercise that we're going through right now is to put names in the circles and figure out exactly what makes sense.”
One of those who could intersect all circles is Thitikul.
Thitikul is humble. She has an inspiring backstory with her vision as a young teenager to make enough money to provide for her family. Her maturity is beyond her years and she has an outgoing personality.
Yet, behind that smile is a fierce competitor.
Thitikul received a champagne shower on the 18th green at the Tour Championship after her birdie putt capped a final round 68 and a 26-under 262 for the tournament, her third win of the season. Thitikul's single-season scoring average of 68.681, broke Sorenstam's mark of 68.697, set in 2002.
"Earlier in the week I was just saying being able to finish four rounds of golf here (would be) just more than I could ask for already," Thitikul said. "But standing here with the trophy on Sunday, holding the trophy, it's just like more than I really, really could ask for, for sure.
"All that work that I put in with my team kind of paid off here today again."
Thitikul, who strengthens the hold on her world No. 1 ranking, was the tour leader in wins, runners-up (4) and top 10s (14) for the season.
"It's amazing for what she has done and what she's doing," said runner-up Pajaree Anannarukan, a fellow Thai who was four shots behind her close friend. "I think it's just good for the game and golf in Thailand as well. She's been a big role model to a lot of new generations and to us and she inspired so much, even us, too."
Jenno Thitikul No. 7 LPGA in career earnings with $17.4 million
The Tour Championship boosted its purse in 2024, bringing the winner's share to $4 million. Thitikul has won both times. Her prize money just from this event the last two years would put her inside the top 50 of the LPGA Tour all-time money list.
As it is, in just four years on the tour, she is No. 7 in career earnings with $17.4 million.
Thitikul was asked what she will remember most about the last few months.
"I just want to remind myself that … the happiness in your life, this day will come definitely. Like the sadness days will come," she said.
"Your career doesn't define who you are and doesn't define who I am as a Jeeno, too.So it's pretty much what I have remembered about last couple months."
Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Craig Kessler looks to boost LPGA; Player of Year Jeeno Thitikul helping
