Jeeno Thitikul reminded everyone just why she is the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings No. 1 on day one of the Buick LPGA Shanghai.

Thitikul is making her first start since finishing runner-up to Charley Hull at the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G, what was a solid yet disappointing result for the five-time LPGA Tour winner, as she stumbled with a four-putt on the final hole at TPC River’s Bend to wind up one stroke behind the Englishwoman.

But in golf, an athlete has to have a short memory, so Thitikul took some time off over the past few weeks to reset and regroup in an effort to get herself ready to come out swinging in the final few events of the 2025 season as she works to end the year in as strong a manner as she started it.

And she showed her mettle on Thursday in the People’s Republic of China.

Thitikul put herself behind the eight ball immediately in round one after making a bogey on the first hole at Qizhong Garden Golf Club and then doubling the second hole to sit at 3-over through two.

But the 22-year-old refused to lie down and quit with a ton of golf still to play, stopping the bleeding with two pars before rattling off four consecutive birdies on the par-4 5th, par-4 6th, par-3 7th and par-4 8th holes to get back to 1-under on the day.

Thitikul struck again with a birdie on the par-3 11th hole to move to 2-under and carded a flurry of three birdies on 13, 14 and 15 to jump to 5-under. She then polished off what is her seventh round of 65 or better in 2025 with a pair of back-to-back birdies on 17 and 18, which were her ninth and 10th birdies of the round, the most made by any athlete on day one of the Buick LPGA Shanghai.

“Used to happen a lot when I was amateur, junior. But I was shocked as well. I was shocked after the second hole. As I say, I still have 16 holes to play, 16 opportunities,” Thitikul said of her frustrating start. “I just told myself to be calm and then don't take anything personal. Definitely you’re going to make a mistake anyway no matter what. And then like I said every time, how you bounce back is more important. You going to learn anyway. Then you have something that sometimes feeling good as always.”

Her 65 has put Thitikul in a five-way tie for second, one shot behind her fellow Thailand native Arpichaya Yubol, who holds the 18-hole lead after opening with a 64. This is Thitikul’s second time competing in the Buick LPGA Shanghai, and in her tournament debut in 2024, she tied for fifth, a solid performance certainly, but one that she is striving to improve upon this week as she works to become the first athlete to collect a second 2025 victory.

So far this season, 26 different athletes have won in the 25 official tournaments on the LPGA Tour schedule, a number that excludes the rain-shortened Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G, which was deemed unofficial when it was reduced to 18 holes. Thitikul counts herself among those 26 champions, beating Celine Boutier by four strokes at Liberty National Golf Club in May to secure her fifth career title and first since she won the CME Group Tour Championship in 2024.

And while it’s been aggravating at times for the 20-something superstar to repeatedly come oh-so close and not get the job done, Thitikul still appreciates the history that she and her LPGA counterparts have been making this year, understanding its indication of a healthy global ecosystem in women’s golf.

“I think it tells us about how the Tour has been going, and then how the field has been so tough right now,” said Thitikul. “We tied the record, which is so amazing. I never seen. I don't know how the last record was in that year, but it's not previous year. I think it’s the time of everyone showing off the performance-wise of the players trying to play as best as possible that they can do and then showing us it's not a small world anymore.

“It's a bigger world, where everywhere you are and any nationality you are, you can win on the LPGA Tour.”

Now, after battling so hard to post a number deep in the red during round one at the Buick LPGA Shanghai, Thitikul finds herself in contention early at Qizhong Garden Golf Club in pursuit of a sixth career Tour title and streak-ending victory, having an opportunity to further reinforce the facts that explain just why she is the Rolex Rankings No. 1.

Jeeno Thitikul Cards 65 on Day One of Buick LPGA Shanghai After Bogey-Double Start

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