Patty Tavatanakit (-18) has won again. She triumphed this Sunday at the Aramco Saudi Ladies International held at the Riyadh Golf Club. She truly dominated. Three years after her last victory, the promising Thai golfer returns to the club of trophy winners. Behind her is a real ordeal of doubts, uncertainties and a thousand and one problems from the tee. The best part: she’s only 24 years old.
Tavatankit burst onto the world golf scene like a bull in a china shop. She hadn’t even turned 19 and had already finished fifth in a US Open. She was a rising star. She kept accumulating one good result after another until she ended up winning the Ana Inspiration in 2021, the first Major of the year. She was 21 years old.
Her progression was such that the Jutanugarn sisters took a back seat. She and Atthaya Thitikul had earned all the spotlights of Thai golf. She hit hard, played brave, birdies were falling out of her pockets and she had shown that she knew how to win. Her limit? Incalculable…
But that’s when the golf’s Uncle Paco and his discounts came along. We all, professionals and amateurs, have an Uncle Paco of discounts. Suddenly, the drive began to fail. She, one of the most powerful hitters in the world, lost her bearings. She wasn’t hitting the fairway. Or, at least, well below average. Not only did her career lose momentum. Not only did she stop appearing on Sundays at the top… and Saturdays. Tavatanakit began to add weeks without making the cut. From the top 10 in the world, she fell beyond the 70th position.
In recent months she had shown some signs of recovery, but confirmation was missing. She had returned to the top 10, she was achieving very good results again, but the victory was still missing. Today Patty has officially come out of the hole. Not just because of the victory itself, but because of how she won. She led from start to finish, from Thursday to Sunday, and finished with scandalous authority, winning with a seven-stroke lead over the second place.
Really, the last round has had little story. The key moment was the start of the 11th hole. Her ball was heading for a tragedy, but a lucky bounce made it playable. The excitement was over. Her 18 greens in regulation and the scorecard of 65 strokes, the best of the day, say it all. It’s as if she’s telling them all: I’ve suffered enough to get here to let this victory slip away. We’ll see if today is a full-fledged resurrection, a before and after or just something anecdotal. Something tells us that we have to count on her again every week.
In second place was the German Esther Henseleit (-11), while third place was shared by the Japanese Minami Katsu and the English Charley Hull (-9).
Meanwhile, Carlota Ciganda (-5) has secured a valuable place in the top 10. She finished tenth with a final round of 70 strokes. She made three birdies and a solitary bogey. The Navarrese maintains her magnificent numbers in tournaments sponsored by Aramco. Her worst result in the last four she has played has been eleventh in Hong Kong, in addition to winning one, finishing second in another and this tenth position.
