Thanana Kotchasanmanee nabs Citrus Ladies with scorching final round

December 30, 2022 | by Sean Melia of AmateurGolf.com

Thanana Kotchasanmanee (Credit: WAGR)

The Thai golfer made up huge ground on her front nine and held on to beat the international field down the stretch

It only took Thanana Kotchasanmanee 29 shots to complete the front nine during the final round of the Citrus Golf Trail Ladies Invitational at Sun ‘N Lake Golf Club. It was a staggering start that ended with a 65 and a two shot victory at 4-under par.

Kotchasanmanee's closing round was the best in the field on the final day by four shots. Only the Welshwoman, Ffion Tynan, University of Arkansas, broke 70. She finished in third place.

The closing round started at a pedestrian pace for Kotchasanmanee. She parred the opening two holes, but then birdied hole Nos. 3,4,5,7, and 8. She capped off the front nine with an eagle on the par-five ninth hole. A birdie on the 11th hole wrapped up her barrage, and her only dropped shot came on the 16th hole.

Finishing in second place was Rianne Mikhaela Malixi. It's been a series of close calls for the Filipina who has recorded a T-3 in the Women's Asia-Pacific Amateur, a runner-up in the Women's Western Am, and a second place in the Malaysian Women's Open Am.

Malixi shot rounds of 78-69-69-70. She started the day three shots ahead of Kotchasanmanee, but that lead was erased quickly, even though Malixi shot a respectable 34 on the front nine, including birdies on hole Nos. 4, 5, and 7. However, she couldn't muster up any more birdies after the tenth hole.

Kotchasanmanee is a sophomore in high school. She is originally from Thailand, but lives in Georgia. She has also finished in a tie for fourth in the Girls Junior PGA Championship and tied for second in the PING Invitational.

In the Forever 49 division, Canadian Terrill Samuel won in a playoff over Martha Leach. The two women finished at 17-over par. The duo outpaced the field by ten shots and were certainly the cream of the crop.

Results: CGT Ladies Invitational

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Thanana Kotchasanmanee	, Thailand	400	73-74-72-65=284
2	Rianne Mikhaela Malixi	, Philippines	300	78-69-69-70=286
T3	Ffion Tynan	, Wales	200	74-70-77-69=290
T3	Vanessa Zhang	, Canada	200	69-73-78-70=290
5	Molly Smith	Westford, MA	200	78-68-76-70=292

View full results for CGT Ladies Invitational

About the CGT Ladies Invitational

Thanana Kotchasanmanee nabs Citrus Ladies with scorching final round

Formerly known as the Harder Hall Invitational, this is a four-day no cut stroke play tournament for women amateurs. It was played at Harder Hall CC for more than 65 years, but in 2021 it moves to a rotation of courses on the Citrus Golf Trail in Seb...