She has a smile that can take over any room.
Her golf mantra is simple: “I want to have fun.”
That’s what Ariya Jutanugarn will tell you if you ask about her game plan for any particular tournament.
Last week’s Women’s British Open was no different. When asked about taking the lead into the final 18 holes, she simply replied: “I want to go out and have fun.”
She had a lot of fun until she made a double-bogey at the lucky 13th hole. She saw a six-shot lead after nine holes cut down to one. A year ago she wouldn’t have been able to survive something like that but on that Sunday, she kept grinding and by the time it was all over, she had won her first major championship by three shots and picked up her fourth victory of the season to tie Lydia Ko for most wins in 2016.
Ariya was rewarded again this week when the Rolex World Rankings came out. She climbed to No. 2 in the world behind Ko, leapfrogging Canadian Brooke Henderson.
Ko still has a Tiger Woods-like strangle hold on the No. 1 spot. She’s at 14.821 while Jutanugarn has quite a way to go at 8.252. It’s a wide margin reminiscent of the leads Woods would have back in his prime when he was No. 1 on the men’s side of the world of golf.
Still, Jutanugarn has come a long way. A year ago she was 124th in the world. How’s that for a meteoric rise?
She probably holds at least one distinction in the world of women’s golf: Best Player In The World Who Doesn’t Have A Driver In Her Golf Bag.
That’s correct, no driver. Doesn’t need one, she’s that long, that powerful.
She’s also a throwback to a few decades ago. She’s a long-iron aficionado.
Here’s the break down on her equipment:
Three-metal: TaylorMade Aeroburner M1, 15-degrees.
Two-iron: TaylorMade Tour Preferred UDI.
Three-iron: Callaway Apex UT.
Four-iron: TaylorMade RSi, Tour Preferred, UDI.
Five-thru-Nine: Titleist 716 AP2.
Wedges: 50-degree, 56-degree, 60-degree, Titleist SM6.
Putter: Odyssey Works Cruiser V-Line.
Ball: Titleist ProV1x.
She must drive the equipment folks crazy because that is a mixed-bag for sure.
She is living proof that clubs all work well when the player has enormous skill and talent.
Her career has been years in the making. Her parents own a golf pro shop at the Rose Garden Golf Course outside Bangkok. Her mother was there to see her win the British and in the process she became the first player from Thailand, male or female to win a major championship.
She qualified for an LPGA Tour event at the age of 11. Yes, 11-years-old. That was the 2007 LPGA Thailand.
She was a rookie on the LPGA Tour in 2015 and now she’s already the No. 2 player in the world.
She is now completely recovered from a shoulder injury she suffered back in 2013 when she was chasing her sister and fellow LPGA player, Moriya down a hill with a water bottle. Kids. The injury required surgery.
Now she is a force to be dealt with. She has power, accuracy and she plays aggressively. She’s had a great major season as well — fourth at the ANA Inspiration, third at the Women’s PGA, T17 at the U.S. Open and now the victory at the British.
Jutanugarn will be one of the favorites along with Ko to vie for the Gold Medal at the Olympic golf competition next week.
In the meantime, she will be the envy of most 20-year-olds.
She’s playing a game, making a lot of money and by her own mantra, having a lot of fun.
