Patty Tavatanakit has clinched the 2021 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year award, the LPGA has announced. The 2021 ANA Inspiration winner earned 1,134 points through 17 events, and holds a 355-point lead over second-place Leona Maguire with two events left in the 2021 season.
Ireland’s Maguire, the star of this year’s Solheim Cup, needed to finish in sixth-place or higher at the BMW Ladies Championship in South Korea to have a chance at overtaking Tavatanakit. Maguire ultimately finished in a share of 61st.
Tavatanakit did not compete in the BMW.
“Earning this award is a dream come true for me,” said Tavatanakit in a release. “It’s once in a lifetime. I’m so thrilled that I get to add my name to a spectacular list of recipients that I have looked up to for many years. This season has been one to remember, and I’m excited to finish 2021 strong as the tour’s newest Rookie of the Year.”
In 2019, the powerful Thai player won the Gaelle Truet Rookie of the Year honors on the Symetra Tour where she won three times and finished second to earn her LPGA card. Last April, the former UCLA standout became the first LPGA rookie to win the ANA since Juli Inkster in 1984. She also notched eight top-10 finishes this season.
There are two remaining events on the LPGA schedule. Tavatankit will receive the award at the 2021 Rolex LPGA Awards ceremony held on Thursday, Nov. 18, at Tiburon Golf Club during the week of the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, Florida.