Ariya Jutanugarn Wins Inaugural LEADERS Top 10 Competition
- Details
- Category: Inside Golf
- Published: 2018-11-14
By THE LPGA
DAYTONA BEACH, Florida — World No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn has clinched the inaugural LEADERS Top 10 competition, and a $100,000 bonus, after accumulating the most top-10 finishes during a hugely successful season on the 2018 LPGA Tour.
The long-hitting Thai racked up 16 top-10s in 27 starts, including three victories and three runner-up spots, while Minjee Lee and Jin Young Ko tied for second, with 13 top-10s. Each of the three players will receive one year's worth of complimentary LEADERS' products.
The LEADERS Top 10 competition began at the season-opening Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic on Paradise Island in late January and concluded at last week’s Blue Bay LPGA in Hainan Island, China.
A trophy presentation for Jutanugarn, who locked up the title with one event remaining, will be made this week at the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, to be played in Naples, Fla., from Nov. 15-18.
"I feel pretty good about my game right now, and it’s great to become the first player to get my name on this trophy," said Jutanugarn, a 10-time winner on the LPGA Tour who returned to the No. 1 spot in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings last month. "I just do my best. It feels good to win awards but also I feel like I have so much fun because this game is really a challenge to me and I still can improve myself every day, no matter how many titles I win. I've been playing a lot of good weeks this year and even when I did not win the tournament. I'm really proud of myself.
"I would also like to thank LEADERS for sponsoring this top-10 competition, because it has made a big difference in highlighting the top performances this year on the LPGA Tour."
Jutanugarn has produced electrifying form in 2018, winning three times and leading the LPGA Tour in multiple statistical categories on the way to earning Player of the Year honors. She claimed her first victory in May at the Kingsmill Championship presented by GEICO, then added a second just two starts later at the U.S. Women's Open, where she beat Hyo Joo Kim in a playoff to secure the second major title of her career. Another win followed at the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open in July, when she fired a 5-under 66 in the final round to triumph by one shot over Minjee Lee.
"Golf is not a team game but an individual game and LEADERS Cosmetics has established the first ever LEADERS Top 10 competition to showcase the consistency of these great athletes," said LEADERS Cosmetics CEO Kim Jin-Goo. "We are proud to present the best LPGA players week in and week out and we congratulate Ariya on her superb form in 2018, and for becoming the first winner of the LEADERS Top 10 trophy. I hope LPGA fans will have a lot of expectation and excitement about which players will flourish in the LEADERS Top 10 competition in the future."
LEADERS Cosmetics, a global leader in facial masks and skincare products, is the LPGA's Official Cosmetics Partner - a relationship that will continue through the 2020 season. Over the past three years, LEADERS Cosmetics has introduced fans to the 'Fresh Faces' of the LPGA by featuring the 'Rookies on Tour' on Golf Channel.