Jeeno Thitikul successfully defended her Mizuho Americas Open crown, closing with a 3-under-par 69 on Sunday to win by four strokes in West Caldwell, New Jersey.
Thitikul, who held the lead for the final three rounds, won the tournament in consecutive years on two different courses. She triumphed by four shots at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City last May and achieved the same margin this year at Mountain Ridge Country Club.
The world No. 2 earned her second victory of 2026, having also won in Thailand in February. This marks her ninth LPGA Tour win, narrowing the gap to Nelly Korda, who reclaimed the top ranking from Thitikul last month and took the week off after a string of victories.
“For me, world ranking or top players doesn’t really define what I’m doing,” Thitikul said after collecting the $487,500 winner’s check. “I’m just trying to do my best out there and be as consistent as I can, because I know every week is a tough competition—on and off, on different courses.”
Thitikul finished at 13-under 275 for the week. China’s Ruoning Yin, who shot 69 on Sunday, placed second alone at 9 under. Yin mounted a chase with five birdies on the front nine—including four straight from holes 5 to 8—but then made two bogeys with no birdies on the back nine.
“I didn’t look at the leaderboard at all, and I didn’t know what was happening,” Thitikul said. “I might have seen it around hole 12 by accident, because the holes are close together. I knew she had a good run catching the leader, but it’s a normal day—when you’re the leader, players try to catch up and always have a good Sunday. I just stayed in my bubble, focused on my tempo and what I could control, and it turned out well.”
Thitikul opened with birdies at holes 2 and 3, then made nine consecutive pars before a bogey on the par-5 13th. She still held a slim lead and sealed it with birdies on the par-3 16th and par-4 18th.
Yin said she was happy with her form despite finishing second.
“Yeah, this week is my fifth runner-up in 19 months, so I don’t know—I think it’s coming,” Yin said. “Something cool is going to happen; I just don’t know when.”
Tied for third at 8 under were Jenny Bae (bogey-free 66), Alison Lee (69), Mexico’s Gaby Lopez (69), and South Korea’s Hye-Jin Choi (71). Bae posted the low round of the day, with four of her six birdies on the front nine.
“I honestly didn’t expect to go bogey-free,” Bae said. “I came in thinking I’d need a lot of birdies to cover mistakes, because it’s kind of inevitable out there. But I saved everything, up and down when needed. Everything was on cruise control.”
