On Sunday, Sept. 14, Charley Hull picked up her third win on the LPGA Tour and her first since 2022. This was thanks, yes, to her own playing efforts, but also to a brutal miss from World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul.
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Welcome back to Golf Thursday, everyone.
It was a dramatic finish at the 2025 Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G in Cincinnati last weekend. Charley Hull posted a final-round 68 to outlast World No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul and win her first LPGA Tour title in three years. Thitikul also shot 68 on the final day of competition, but that score was marred by a four-putt on the 72nd hole. Let’s break it down.
The final round was a rollercoaster from start to finish. Both Hull and Thitikul had solid front nine scores; Hull carded three straight birdies on Nos. 6, 7 and 8 to go out in 33, and Thitikul battled back from an early bogey on No. 2 to go out in 34. At the halfway point of the final round, Hull, at 19-under-par, was two strokes ahead of Thitikul on the leaderboard.
But on the back nine, things started to shift. Thitikul birdied No. 10 to climb to 18-under. Then, both she and Hull birdied the par-5 11th hole, putting them at 19-under and 20-under respectively. Hull was still one stroke ahead.
Hull then bogeyed the 13th hole to drop one shot into a tie with Thitikul. But Jeeno quickly took the lead on the next hole, the par-4 14th, with a birdie to get to 20-under-par. Charley’s pars on Nos. 14 and 15 kept her one back of the lead. The fight wasn’t over for the 29-year-old Englishwoman, though.
Hull drained a lengthy birdie putt on the par-3 16th to get to 20-under and a tie the lead, but she then bogeyed No. 17 to drop a shot once more. Thitikul was putting together a string of pars, so she remained at 20-under going into the final hole.
The par-5 18th is gettable, and both players showed their strength with long drives off the tee box. They each had opportunities to get on the green in two, which they both did. Thitikul putt first from the back of the green to a middle pin location. She judged the lag putt well and had a few feet left for birdie to win the tournament. Hull also judged her lag well and had about a foot-long putt to tap in for birdie.
And then, the unthinkable. Thitikul blew her birdie try by the left side of the hole and then missed the three-foot par putt coming back. That four-putt bogey on the final hole dropped her to 19-under-par, leaving her only to sit and watch Hull’s attempt to win the tournament.
Hull’s birdie try curled around the edge of the cup as it dropped in, securing her victory by one stroke.
Throughout the round, Hull had some clutch par saves that kept her level-headed and consistent. This grind paid off.
The win is Hull’s third on the LPGA Tour, and it marks the first time an Englishwoman has won the Kroger Queen City Championship. Hull has been on a roll this season, finishing tied for second this summer at the 2025 AIG Women’s Open and tied for second at the Aramco Houston Championship on the Ladies European Tour.
But what happened to Thitikul? It’s something you never want to see a player do to lose a tournament, or at all. The dreaded four-putt is essentially unheard of in the professional game, but golf loves to remind everyone to never say never.
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Since Thitikul took over the World No. 1 spot from Nelly Korda after the 2025 AIG Women’s Open, each of her three starts have resulted in top-10 finishes. She finished tied for seventh at the CPKC Women’s Open. Thitikul’s second place finish here at the Kroger Queen City Championship is her second in a row, following up one at the FM Championship. Her only win this year was at the 2025 Mizuho Americas Open.
Korda didn’t have a win in 2025 during her tenure as World No. 1, despite having a fantastic season statistically. Thitikul’s 11 top-10 finishes and 16 cuts made in 17 starts this season might also be proof of that “curse.” She is playing extremely solid golf, and she thrives in this home stretch of the season. One can only hope that the blip on the 72nd hole of the KQCC doesn’t stay in her head for too long. With the Hanwha LIFEPLUS International Crown almost on the horizon, she has an opportunity to shine with her dominant Thai teammates.
We talked a few weeks ago about the LPGA Tour’s streak of different winners, and that streak continues with Hull’s win at the KQCC. It might not, after all, be a curse on the World No. 1 ranked player but rather the result of a very unique, very difficult LPGA Tour season. It is tougher than ever to win golf tournaments.
See you next week, golf fans.
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Five at The IX: Charley Hull’s post-win press conference at the 2025 Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G
THE MODERATOR: Okay, here now with the winner of the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G. Just take us through the day. Especially obviously 18. What you were thinking standing over that putt.
CHARLEY HULL: Yeah, I felt like I played pretty solid all day. The back nine I felt I was playing pretty solid. Nothing was dropping until that putt on 16.
Hit a good putt on I think it was my 13th hole where I made bogey. It was right in the middle of the hole.
Then I don’t know how it missed. That was kind of a bit of like, ah. Then I tried to make some birdies coming in and didn’t drop until 16. It was a tricky pin. And then 17 I didn’t want to be in the left rough.
It was quite an awkward shot. It was 275 to carry the bunker; couldn’t quite carry it, so I was trying to hit just a nice perfect little draw off that bunker.
In the bunker it would’ve been completely fine, but I’ve really hit a good drive there. It didn’t move a yard. Anywhere in the bunker would’ve been fine, but I was in the lip. Three feet back I would’ve had a nice easy shot to the green. Got a bit screwed there.
Then 18 pushed my driver a little bit. Hit a nice cut 9-iron round the tree; didn’t quite cut. Thought I had to hole the putt and just two-putted.
I don’t really remember much from the last hole. It was a little bit of a shock. I was nervous over that putt. My hands were shaking. I think, wow, I think I was more shocked and the adrenaline and everything.
Q: You’re the 25th different winner on the LPGA Tour this season; something we’ve never seen before. What does that streak say about the parity in women’s golf right now?
CHARLEY HULL: Yeah, it shows you how strong and the depth there is on the LPGA Tour. Like going back, say, 20 years ago, it was — you would get very much the same winners because always the top 10 on the rankings.
Now I feel like the depth is so strong, so that shows you how strong the Tour is. It’s getting harder and harder to win, so you’ve have to play good every week.
Q: Why do you think you managed to still play so well in spite of all the injuries and illnesses you dealt with?
CHARLEY HULL: Yeah, it’s been a rocky couple of months, to be fair. Obviously fainting at Evian, doing my back, and then tearing the ligament in my ankle. I sound like a bit of a car crash.
I don’t know. I suppose pain is just a weakness of the mind. Probably does me a bit of a favor sometimes because I end up doing too much, too much gym, practice, overthinking. It’s given me time to chill and that’s probably what I needed.
Q. Could you describe what was going on on your last putt? It was only like a foot putt.
CHARLEY HULL: Yeah, it was only like a foot putt, but I think I was generally that shocked. And then I get a lot of adrenaline on the way round. I can cog down — say if it was like a 190 pin that would be a 5-iron; I could hit a 7-iron that far.
I feel like I was pretty calm coming into the green, knew I had to hole the putt four eagle. Missed it and had a foot putt. When I realized I had it for the win I had this mad shock of adrenaline come through me and my hands was like, shaking.
I was like, oh, no. Usually I can calm it down in like five minutes, but I had to play straightaway. I had to back off it twice. I don’t know how like Tiger Woods won that many tournaments, that much pressure. It was just a shock.
If I knew it was to win coming up the hole I think I would’ve been fine. I think I was just so shocked. Yeah, I holed it and it was good. Even though it was a foot putt, they feel like 10-footers.
Q. I know you’re quite a confident player, but what does this do for your confidence looking ahead to the rest of the season?
CHARLEY HULL: Yeah, I’m buzzing. Got the International Crown coming up in Korea and then The ANNIKA and Tour Championship. Obviously I’ve won round that Tour Championship course before, so I’m just buzzing to go out there and play a bit of golf.
Not too much because I’m still managing my ankle and that. Now I feel like I know I can do it. It’s been a bit of a drought. I’ve [had] quite a few second place finishes and it’s been the bridesmaid and now I’m the bride, finally.
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