NAPLES, Fla. – Lexi Thompson won $1 million for the CME Race to the Globe and left so much more behind Sunday in the LPGA Tour’s final event.

Thompson was poised to win the CME Group Tour Championship and LPGA player of the year until she jabbed at a 2-foot par putt and missed it on the 18th hole at Tiburon Golf Club. That paved the way for Ariya Jutanugarn, who birdied her last two holes for a 5-under 67 and a one-shot victory.

It was a wild ending to the LPGA Tour season and sent four players home with a trophy of some variety.

Although she lost the tournament, Thompson still won the CME Race to the Globe and the $1 million bonus. She also won the Vare Trophy for having the lowest adjusted scoring average.

Thompson had to win the tournament to be player of the year. Instead, the points-based LPGA player of the year was a tie between a pair of major champions from South Korea, So Yeon Ryu and LPGA rookie Sung Hyun Park. It was the first time the award was shared since it began in 1966.

Park, the U.S. Women’s Open champion, was trying to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to sweep the major awards. She already had won rookie of the year. She had to settle for a tie for player of the year, and her 75 in the third round damaged her chances of winning the Vare Trophy.

Brooke Henderson (72) of Smiths Falls, Ont., tied for 25th at 6 under and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (69) tied for 46th at 1 under.

What stood out on another sunny afternoon was the sterling performance of Jutanugarn, who won for the second time this year.

She was three shots behind Thompson with six holes to play when her putter saved the day.

Jutanugarn was at 13 under on the par-5 17th when she hit a hybrid for her second shot into the bunker and blasted out to about 18 feet. Ahead of her on the 18th green, Thompson was at 15 under and lagged a 50-foot birdie attempt beautifully down the slope on the 18th to 2 feet left of the cup.

Jutanugarn made birdie. Thompson missed her par putt, and there was a three-way tie for the lead at 14 under that included Jessica Korda, who was playing with Thompson and had left her 25-foot birdie attempt well short.

Thompson and Korda each closed with a 67.

Jutanugarn hit her approach about 18 feet above the hole and made it for winning birdie. She finished at 15-under 273 and earned $500,000.

“I had no expectation at all,” Jutanugarn said. “I really did not think about the outcome.”

Jutanugarn was part of a four-way tie for the lead going into the final round, and the CME Group Tour Championship was up for grabs most of the day until Thompson seemingly seized control with 32 on the front nine, a 10-foot birdie on the 13th and then a superb pitch from left of the 17th green that set up a 3-foot birdie.

Pernilla Lindberg had reason to believe she needed birdie from long range on the 18th to have a chance. She ran that 7 feet by the hole and three-putted for a bogey and a 68. She wound up finishing two shots behind, along with Eun-Hee Ji (67).

Michelle Wie, trying to win for the first time since the U.S. Women’s Open in 2014, had a share of the lead until she hit near the edge of a bunker and made double bogey on No. 9, and then dropped two more shots on the back nine. Even with seven birdies, Wie still only managed a 70. She tied for sixth with Park, who closed with a 69. Park was at 13 under through 35 holes and played 1 over the final 37 holes.

Ryu was coping with a shoulder injury and was happy to squeeze in 72 holes. She wound up a part-winner of LPGA player of the year.

Thompson was on the putting green when she heard the cheer for Jutanugarn’s final birdie.

It was the second time this year that Thompson appeared to be in control and was stunned to not win. She had a four-shot lead in the final round of the ANA Inspiration when she was penalized four shots – two for incorrectly marking her golf ball on the green in the third round, and two more shots because the infraction wasn’t discovered by a viewer until the next day, and so she signed an incorrect scorecard in the third round.

She wound up losing to Ryu in a playoff, though Thompson said this week it made her a stronger person.

This will be another wound from which to recover, though she at least takes $1 million home with her as a consolation.

NAPLES, Fla. – Sung Hyun Park was in the palmetto bushes, near the base of the tree, in the bunkers and going nowhere in the CME Group Tour Championship.

Perhaps most surprising at the end of the day was that Park was no longer in the lead.

What looked to be a victory lap for the 24-year-old rookie from South Korea turned into a free-for-all Saturday at Tiburon Golf Club. Park at least was in solid position, one shot out of the lead, in her bid to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to sweep all the major LPGA Tour awards.

She just never expected so much company.

Michelle Wie, who lost six weeks to an emergency appendectomy, had a 6-under 66 and was part of a four-way tie for the lead going into the final round. Kim Kaufman, who is recovering from mono, ran off eight birdies in her round of 64. Joining them at 10-under 206 were Ariya Jutanugarn (67) and Suzann Pettersen (69).

“Just really feeling like my old self,” said Wie, who hasn’t won since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst No. 2. “Really feeling comfortable out there and having fun, and that’s why I play my best.”

Brooke Henderson (70) of Smiths Falls, Ont., was tied for 23rd at 6-under par. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (69) was tied for 54th at 2 over.

“Being this far back with that many people ahead of you it’s very unlikely that I could be the champion of this event this year,” said Henderson. “However, I can still get into the top 10, maybe even better if I get off to a hot start tomorrow and hopefully make a few putts.”

Park, who didn’t make a birdie until the 13th hole and shot 75, was among seven players one shot behind.

Now she can only hope her one bad day is behind her.

“I think that over the course of four days, there is always a day where I’m not quite in tip-top shape,” Park said. “I think that day might have been today. Keeping your focus is not that easy to do consistently over four days, so I think there is always one day where my focus is a little off.”

Lexi Thompson, who leads the CME Race to the Globe, suddenly has just as good of a chance as Park to capture the $1 million bonus. Thompson also is poised to win the Vare Trophy for the lowest adjusted scoring average. Park needed to finish 10 shots ahead of Thompson – she started Saturday six shots ahead – to win the Vare Trophy.

“I’m not going into tomorrow with any different attitude,” Thompson said. “Just going to go out there, free swing, commit to my targets, and try to do my best.”

The final day is so wide open that 31 players were separated by four shots.

That includes Shanshan Feng, in her debut at No. 1 in the world, and Brooke Henderson of Canada. They only have to win the Tour Championship to claim the CME Race to the Globe. And they all have Park to thank for every having a chance.

Kaufman showed early that low scores were available in her round of eight birdies. Park showed early that it was going to be a grind when she missed the green to the left on No. 2 and pitched far too strong up the slope, leading to bogey.

Then, she hit into palmetto bushes on the par-5 sixth and made double bogey, and the game was on.

Park looked as though she had steadied herself with an 8-foot birdie on No. 13 and scrambling for birdie after a poor drive in the waste area right of the 14th. But she took bogey from the bunker on the par-3 16th to fall back into a share of the lead, and then drove well left on the par-5 17th next to a tree. She chipped into a sandy waste area, came up short into a bunker and failed to get up-and-down.

Stacy Lewis (67), who ended a three-year victory drought two months ago, shot a 67 and was in the group at 9-under 207 that included Thompson (69), Park, Karine Icher (68) and Austin Ernst, whose 69 featured a quadruple-bogey 8 and an eagle-birdie finish on the back nine.

At stake on Sunday is just about everything.

So Yeon Ryu, who was only five shots behind but had 31 players ahead of her on the leaderboard, still had an outside chance at holding on to her lead for LPGA player of the year if Feng, Park and Thompson failed to finish near the top of the leaderboard.

Thompson suddenly looks good for the Vare, while Park remained in good shape to capture the money title.

Jutanugarn, who won five times last year, is No. 9 in the CME Race to the Globe. She could win the $1 million bonus by winning the tournament and have Thompson finish out of the top nine. Instead of a sprint to the finish, so many players have a chance that it still feels like a long way off.

NAPLES, Fla. – Golf felt so easy to Sung Hyun Park that only when she took out her card to catch up on her scores did she realize she had closed out the front nine with five straight birdies at the CME Group Tour Championship.

Park kept right on attacking.

The 24-year-old from South Korea added a 30-foot eagle putt late in her second round and finished with a 7-under 65, giving her a three-shot lead going into the weekend at Tiburon Golf Club.

Nothing seems to bother her, even the chance to cap off an amazing rookie season by sweeping all the big awards on the LPGA Tour.

“To be honest, I don’t feel quite as nervous as I thought I would,” Park said through an interpreter. “After the first shot, after the first hole, I felt a lot more comfortable. I’m not feeling as nervous as I thought I might be going into today.”

Leave that to the players chasing her.

Even with a three-putt bogey on the final hole, Park was at 12-under 132 and was three shots clear of Caroline Masson (66) and Sarah Jane Smith (69).

More importantly, none of the other players in the chase for the $1 million Race to the CME Globe bonus or any other big award was within five shots of Park, who is trying to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to win LPGA player of the year.

Lexi Thompson, who leads the Race to the CME Globe and the Vare Trophy for lowest adjusted scoring average, shot a 67 and wound up losing ground. She was six shots behind and must stay within 10 shots of Park to win the Vare.

So Yeon Ryu, who leads the points-based award for player of the year, managed a 71 with her sore right shoulder but was 11 shots back.

The other two players who need to win the tournament to collect the $1 million bonus also had their work cut out for them. Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., had another 70 and was eight shots behind, while world No. 1 Shanshan Feng shot 73 and was 11 shots behind. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was 5 over.

Park was in control, only she didn’t see it that way.

“I don’t think it’s quite that far of a lead,” Park said. “Two, three shots of a lead can change at any moment. We will have to see what’s in store for this weekend.”

Park began her big run with an 18-foot birdie on No. 5, got up-and-down for birdie from just off the green at the par-5 sixth, holed a 25-foot birdie putt on No. 7, and then closed out the front nine with birdie putts from 8 feet and 15 feet.

“I actually didn’t know that I was going five birdies in a row,” Park said. “Come hole No. 10, I realized that I hadn’t been jotting down my scores as diligently, and so I realized it a little bit later on. And it felt great.”

That gave her the lead by one shot over Suzann Pettersen, except that Pettersen faded badly on the back nine.

Pettersen dropped four shots in a three-hole stretch by getting out of position off the tee and she shot 39 on the back nine for a 70 to fall five shots behind.

“I feel like I’m playing good,” Pettersen said. “Three bad drives on the back nine cost me four shots. That should not be possible on this course, where the fairways are about 100 yards wide.”

Park was honoured at an awards banquet Thursday night as the LPGA rookie of the year. Now, she has more awards in her sights. A victory would give her the award for player of the year. She would capture the money title, which she leads over Ryu. And depending on how the weekend goes, she might be able to surpass Thompson in the race for the Vare Trophy.

Thompson did well to recover from two bogeys on her opening three holes.

“I hit a few really erratic shots in the beginning. It wasn’t a good start to the round,” Thompson said. “Just tried to stay positive and find something that could work for the last 14, 15 holes.”

Lydia Ko fell six shots behind in her bid to avoid a winless season. She was one shot behind going into the second round but managed only three birdies in her round of 71.

Park, meanwhile, had everything going her way. Even when she pulled her drive on the par-5 14th into a sandy area with a root next to her ball, she picked it clear and sent it through a goal post of trees back to the fairway. Three holes later, she blasted a drive and had only a 7-iron into the green at the par-5 17th, which she hit to 30 feet and made the long putt.

Does anything make her nervous?

“I hate spiders,” she said. “But in terms of golf, I always get nervous to this day on the first tee. I can feel my heart pounding.”

It’s a feeling that doesn’t appear to last very long.

NAPLES, FLA – Korea’s Sung Hyun Park received her trophy as the LPGA Tour’s top rookie of 2017 at a ceremony in Florida on Thursday.

Park was presented with the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year trophy during the LPGA ceremony at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort. It was held after the opening-round of the LPGA’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship.

Park actually clinched the points race for the top rookie honors in mid-October. She had opened a 1,413-615 lead over Angel Yin of the United States with five tournaments remaining. Rookies earn 150 points for each victory, which is doubled for majors and the CME Group Tour Championship. Yin was only scheduled to play four more events at the time and wouldn’t have been able to catch Park.

The 24-year-old former Korea LPGA star won the U.S. Women’s Open for her first LPGA win and her first major in July, and she followed up with a win at the CP Women’s Open in August.

She became the first rookie to reach No. 1 in the world rankings last week, but her reign lasted just one week, as Feng Shanshan of China soon brought her down to No. 2.

Heading into CME Group Tour Championship, Park was leading the LPGA in money and was in second place in scoring average. She was also in third in the Player of the Year points race, within striking distance of the current leader, Ryu So-yeon of South Korea.

No rookie has won the money title, scoring title, Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year in the same year since Nancy Lopez in 1978.

NAPLES, Fla. – LPGA rookie Sung Hyun Park took a big first step toward sweeping all the season awards, and possibly picking up a $1 million bonus.

Park made a pair of birdies over the closing stretch at Tiburon Golf Club on Thursday for a 5-under 67, leaving the 24-year-old from South Korea one shot behind after the opening round of the CME Group Tour Championship.

Peiyun Chien of Taiwan and Sarah Jane Smith of Australia opened with bogey-free rounds of 66 to share the lead in a warm breeze.

Park had decent separation from the other four players who only have to win the final LPGA Tour event of the year to capture the CME Race to the Globe and its $1 million bonus. As for the entire 74-player field, it was plenty crowded at the top. That includes Lydia Ko, the first of a record five players who have been No. 1 this year.

Ko, who has gone 34 starts over 16 months on the LPGA Tour since her last victory, drilled a 3-wood onto the green at the par-5 17th and made the 15-foot eagle putt, then holed a bunker shot for par on the final hole for a 67.

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., had a 70 and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp shot a 75.

Of the top seven players on the leaderboard, Park is the only LPGA Tour winner this season.

“Nothing different from my usual play,” Park said. “I think I started off with a really good feel, a lot of good shots and some good putts. There is a little bit of bounce on the greens, but I think I can play well in the next rounds.”

She dropped two shots by missing the green and coming up short on pitch-and-runs up the slope, though she atoned for those mistakes with seven birdies.

Park had only seen Tiburon on Wednesday during the pro-am. Her peers don’t necessarily see her as a rookie because she dominated on the Korean LPGA Tour the last two years. But she’s new to the LPGA Tour and already has won rookie of the year.

At stake for Park is a chance to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to win all the major awards.

Most players headed back to their rooms to get dressed for the Rolex Awards dinner on Thursday night, which is more of a preview than a coronation because all the major awards won’t be decided until Sunday.

Lexi Thompson leads the Race to the CME Globe and the Vare Trophy. So Yeon Ryu has a tiny lead for player of the year. Park is leading the money list. Shanshan Feng, who made her debut at No. 1 in the world, is coming off two straight victories and can capture the Globe and player of the year with a victory.

Park was the only one with a presence on the leaderboard.

Thompson began by slamming her driver into the turf as she watched her opening tee shot sail so far right on the par-5 opening hole that it landed in a murky creek in the hazard. She took her penalty drop and let the club fall out of her hands as she pushed the next shot into the hazard. Thompson at least could play that shot, and she eventually holed a 6-foot putt to escape the bogey.

That was the only big damage for Thompson, though some of her best putts were for par and she managed only a 71.

“I bounced back, had a good attitude out there and played some solid golf coming in,” Thompson said.

Feng opened with a birdie and holed a 25-foot birdie putt on her third hole, though her momentum stalled and she had to settle for a 70, along with Brooke Henderson, who at No. 5 in the Race to the CME Globe also can collect the $1 million bonus just by winning.

Ryu had treatment on her right shoulder at the turn and battled for a 72.

Park, with her lanky build and long swing, looked impervious to all the awards on the line this week. And she wasn’t the least bit bothered playing alongside Thompson and Feng. She attacked the course with her driver and managed the wind with her high ball flight.

“They are playing that I played with before, so nothing particularly different today,” she said through a translator.

The surprise might have been Ko, though she has shown signs in recent months of getting her game back. Her biggest concern was the prospect of throwing away her eagle with what looked like a double bogey on the final hole. From a buried lie in the bunker, however, it came out perfectly and rattled into the cup for par and a 67.

“I don’t think I’ve made a par like that before,” Ko said. “I hit it way too hard and it kind of half-plugged in the bunker. I said, ‘Oh, great. What am I going to make?’ Luckily, it was the perfect place to hit for a 4.”

After 32 official events across 15 countries and 14 states, the 2017 LPGA season culminates with this week’s CME Group Tour Championship at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Fla. In a year that saw 22 different winners from eight countries, several season-ending awards, including the Race to the CME Globe and Rolex Player of the Year honours, are still up for grabs.

The Race to the CME Globe is a season-long points competition in which LPGA Members accumulate points in every Official LPGA Tournament. Following the Blue Bay LPGA, the top 72 LPGA Members, as well as any non-member winners and any alternates, in the Race to the CME Globe points standings were seeded into the championship field. For the top five players, it’s easy – win the CME Group Tour Championship and take home $1 million. However, the top 12 in the points race all have a mathematical chance to take the title of Race to the CME Globe Champion and win the coveted check.

Going into the CME Group Tour Championship, Lexi Thompson leads the Race with 5,000 points. Sung Hyun Park, who has already clinched Rolex Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year honours, sits in second with 4,750 points. Rounding out the top five, who control their own destinies at Tiburon, are newly minted World No. 1 Shanshan Feng (4,500), So Yeon Ryu (4,250) and Canada’s Brooke Henderson (4,000).

RACE TO THE CME GLOBE WINNING SCENARIOS

HAINAN, China – Shanshan Feng shot a 2-under 70 in the final round to win the Blue Bay LPGA by one stroke.

With the win, Feng is projected to become the first top-ranked golfer – male or female – from China.

“I finished first in China, so I actually claimed the world No. 1 in front of all the people at home,” Feng said Saturday after finishing on 9-under 279. “I’m really happy about that, and I hope all the Chinese are going to be watching me … Hopefully there will be more Chinese getting on the tours and more world No. 1s coming up from China.”

Feng, who won last week in Japan, became the first back-to-back winner of 2017.

Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn (70) was second at 8 under, just one shot behind Feng after narrowly missing a birdie attempt on the 72nd hole.

“I was just trying to give myself a chance,” Jutanugarn said of her final putt.

Current top-ranked Sung Hyun Park (72), Ashleigh Buhai (73) and American duo Jessica Korda (71) and Megan Khang (68) all tied for third.

Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ont., finished T42 at 9 over par.

HAINAN, China – Shanshan Feng carded a 1-over 73 Friday to take a one-shot lead after the third round of the Blue Bay LPGA.

Feng, who won last week in Japan, had an up-and-down day with three birdies and four bogeys to leave herself at 7-under 209 overall. Feng is looking to become the first back-to-back winner of 2017.

“Given that today was actually very, very windy, I really held up ground, especially with my approach shots to the greens,” Feng said.

Second-round leader Ashleigh Buhai (76) dropped to third place, two strokes behind Feng. Moriya Jutanugarn (68) hit seven birdies to move up six places into second at 6 under.

“It’s been pretty solid so far this week,” Jutanugarn said. “It just helps to be patient a lot on this golf course. Some lucky bounce and just … it’s golf. I’m really enjoying this week so far.”

No. 1-ranked Sung Hyun Park and Na Yeon Choi (both 68) moved up from 20th place into a tie for fourth.

HAINAN, China – Ashleigh Buhai shot a 4-under 68 Thursday to take a one-stroke lead after the second round of the Blue Bay LPGA tournament.

The South African birdied four of the last seven holes, including a difficult chip-in on the par-4 12th, to finish at 9-under 135 overall, one shot ahead of Shanshan Feng (67).

“It played a lot tougher than the last few days,” Buhai said. “The wind was more or less the same direction, just a bit stronger, so I think it helps being the same direction as you have an idea what to do. It was just a case of taking more club and just trying to play it with the wind.”

Feng shot the best round of the day with her 67, a score that moved her up 13 places and into second.

“I knew that after the first round, I would be warmed up a little more,” Feng said. “I would say my ball-striking today was better, so I was giving myself birdie chances.”

First round leader Sun Young Yoo (74) dropped to third place at 5 under, while Lizette Salas (73) is fourth at 4 under. Defending champion Minjee Lee (73) is in a tie for 20th at even par, along with No. 1-ranked Sung Hyun Park (76). Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ont., was at 1 under after a 74.

HAINAN, China – Sun Young Yoo carded a seven-under 65 Wednesday to take a one-stroke lead after the first round of the Blue Bay LPGA tournament.

Yoo had seven birdies and hit 12 of 14 fairways in a bogey-free round at Jian Lake Blue Bay Golf Club. Xiang Sui of China had a 66 to hold second spot, one clear of five players at 5 under, including American Lizette Salas.

“Swing-wise, I kept the same thing. I just tried to have fun out there, and actually I had a lot of fun today,” Yoo said.

Sui fell behind by two strokes with a bogey on the 15th hole, but was able to regain a stroke on the leader with birdies on her last two.

No. 1-ranked Sung Hyun Park had 68 and was in a share of ninth at 4 under.

Defending champion Minjee Lee had six birdies, but she struggled to find consistency as she hit five bogeys to finish the round at 71.

Jessica Korda rebounded after a quadruple-bogey on the par-five third hole, hitting six birdies to finish at 1 under.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was tied for 13th after shooting 3-under 69.