Thailand’s P. K. Kongkraphan captured her first TLPGA Tour title this season by winning the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour (LPGT) co-sanctioned ICTSI Luisita Ladies International at the Luisita Golf and Country Club at Clark Freeport Zone, Philippines.

The three-time TLPGA Tour winner in 2023 completed the 54-hole event with a final-round 74 and a total of 5-under-par 211, beating Taiwan’s Chen Hsuan (陳萱), Wu Chih-Yun (吳芷昀), and local player Harmie Nicole Constantino by three shots. Kongkraphan took home an $18,000 prize cheque in the $100,000 tournament.

Kongkraphan started the final round holding a one-stroke lead, but consecutive bogeys on no.5 and no.6 allowed Chen Hsuan to pass her.

Kongkraphan remained unfazed, though, knocking in crucial par putts one after another, which could have potentially been damaging, and took back the advantage when Chen’s mistakes crept in on the inward nine.

“It’s not easy to make putts, where they put the pins. And the heat was a big factor. The conditions were pretty brutal out there,” said Kongkraphan, who decided to keep a safer pace to protect her lead. “I saved a lot of pars. It was just one of those days you know you have to not get too ambitious.”

Chen’s nerves kicked in when she started to miss some short putts and saw the lead given back to Kongkraphan. “It was nothing to do with my sore wrist. It was just a bad putting from me. I started to miss many routine putts, especially on the back nine, which was a little frustrating,” said Chen, who needed 34 putts.

“My feet kicking the ball would probably be more accurate than my putter hitting it,” Chen said with a wry smile. “I don’t have time to feel bad. With the CTBC Ladies Open soon arriving, I’ll have to take good care of my wrist and rest well, and hopefully my putting will be in better shape.”

Despite not feeling very well in the hip and waist, which affected Wu Chih-Yun’s precision from the tees and fairways, the Taiwanese stayed sharp on the greens and finished with a Thursday 72, wrapping it up in a tie for the second place.

Philippines’ own Harmie Nicole Constantino raised the level of her putting and came up with a low-round 69 to rise into the runner-up finish. “The Luisita course plays quite long for me, actually. But I’m happy my game adapted well and everything came together on the final day”, said the Filipino.

The ICTSI Luisita Ladies International is presented by International Container Terminal Services Inc.. This week which marks the 15th reunion of the TLPGA Tour and LPGT since the friendship commenced in 2015 at the ICTSI Ladies Open—TLPGA Tour’s first oversea co-sanction after it was accepted into the WWGR (World Women’s Golf Rankings) system the same year.