Ko Jin-young, who lost world No.1 due to injury and slump... Titi Kun rises to No.1

9 Months After Ascending in January
Titikun, Following Lydia Ko, Becomes Second Youngest No.1 Before Age 20 in History

In the 15th hole of the first round at last month's BMW Ladies Championship, Ko Jin-young is teeing off.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Taewon] Due to prolonged poor performance caused by injury setbacks, Ko Jin-young (27) has finally relinquished her world No. 1 ranking to Thailand's rising star Atthaya Thitikul. This comes nine months after she reclaimed the No. 1 spot from Nelly Korda (USA) at the end of January.

In the world rankings released on the 31st of last month, Ko Jin-young recorded 7.09 ranking points, falling short by 0.04 points behind Thitikul's 7.13, dropping to second place. Ko first ascended to No. 1 on January 31. The world rankings are calculated based on tournament results over the past two years, with recent and major tournaments weighted more heavily.

Adverse factors compounded. Ko Jin-young had an extended absence due to injury and failed to produce good results even after her return. In August, at the AIG Women's Open and CP Open, she experienced her first 'consecutive missed cuts' since joining the LPGA Tour, and subsequently took a break citing wrist injury.

Before her comeback, at last month's LPGA Tour BMW Ladies Championship, she showed her worst form with 15-over-par 159 strokes over two days and eventually withdrew before the third round.

In contrast, this season Thitikul has shown unstoppable momentum, finishing in the top 10 in all five recent tournaments she entered, including one victory.

By rising to world No. 1, Thitikul also set various records.

Born in February 2003 and currently 19 years old, Thitikul became the second youngest player ever to reach No. 1 in the world rankings, following Lydia Ko (New Zealand), who first achieved No. 1 at 17 years and 9 months. Only Lydia Ko and Thitikul have reached No. 1 before turning 20.

Additionally, Thitikul became the second Thai player ever to hold the No. 1 spot after Ariya Jutanugarn, and the second LPGA Tour rookie to reach No. 1 since Park Sung-hyun (29) in 2017.

Following Thitikul and Ko Jin-young, Lydia Ko, who won the BMW Ladies Championship, ranked third, while Korda and Minjee Lee (Australia) held fourth and fifth places respectively.

Jeon In-ji (28) maintained eighth place, Kim Hyo-joo (27) dropped one spot to tenth. Kim Sei-young (29) is 13th, Park Min-ji (24) 17th, Choi Hye-jin (23) 19th, and Park In-bee (34) 23rd.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.