20-year-old Thai golfer Atthaya Thitikul finished the season without winning a tournament, but she left Naples, Florida with a trophy in hand. Thitikul locked up the LPGA’s scoring title with a 69.533 average over 75 rounds. This made her the first player in the award’s 70-year history to win the scoring title without winning a tournament. She also became just the second Thai player to lift the Vare Trophy, following Ariya Jutanugarn in 2018.

Thitikul’s fifth-place finish at the CME Group Tour Championship on Sunday marked her 13th top-10 finish of the season, despite facing challenges such as two MCs in majors and a WD after an opening 79 at the Women’s Scottish. However, Thitikul was able to bounce back from these setbacks and overcome them.

“You know what? I had no idea I was going to win the Vare Trophy, to be honest,” she said. “In the middle of the season, I played really bad. So, it’s really meaningful for me when I just bounce back from like really being uncomfortable when I don’t have any confidence there during that time.”

Thitikul is grateful for this accomplishment and sees it as a positive step forward in her career.