With a brilliant 2023 run, the LPGA season is coming to an end. After encountering new faces and showcasing their exceptional skill sets, the LPGA will host the season ending event at Naples, Florida. The CME Group Tour Championship will have the highest ranked golfers from the Tour competing for the biggest prize money and the champion’s trophy.

The CME Group Tour Championship will have a practice round on Monday, November 13. However, the official first round will commence on November 16 after two days of Pro-Am matches. A total of 60 LPGA pros will compete against each other in an intense battle. Who are the five golfers we at Essentially Sports believe have a brighter chance of winning it all?

Top 5 contenders for CME Group Tour Championship

From the first event of LPGA in 2023, the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, the women’s tour had been assigning points to the golfers. The Race to CME Globe is a points competition lasting an entire season, where players get ranked as they perform and earn points. The Top 60 and ties on the list then will traverse to the ultimate championship. However, only one will take the trophy home. We at ES think it will out of these five:

1. Celine Boutier: Spectacular would be less of a word to describe the blasting season Boutier has had. The French golfer won four titles just this season and has eight Top 10 finishes. Her latest victory came at the Maybank Championship. Boutier shot 21 under 267 and beat Atthaya Thitikul in the playoffs. Although she missed the cut for The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican, standing first on the Race to CME Globe list and third in the Rolex World Ranking, it will not be easy stopping this fiery ball of talent.

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2. Lilia Vu: World No.2 golfer Lilia Vu has done what many did not expect of her – reaching the world’s best spot in the month of August 2023. Vu had won thrice this season while winning two Majors. Her first triumph was at the Honda LPGA Thailand, and her most recent win was at the AIG Women’s Open in the UK. With 2 all around, Vu stands second in the Race to CME Globe standings. With five Top 10s this year, the American golfer will not let anyone take the cup freely.

3. Ruoning Yin: Ranked 3rd on the Race to CME Globe and holding the seat of the World No.1 golfer, the Chinese golfer is having a fiery 2023 season. She won the LA Open and the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, becoming the second Chinese golfer to do so. Moreover, Yin had seven Top 10 finishes in the 19 events she played. Mind you, at the get of 21, Yin is giving serious competition to the oldies on the tour. Putting Vu in the second spot was not an easy feat. Will she win the penultimate championship? We dare say yes!

4. Minjee Lee: With two victories in 2023 and four Top 10s, the Australian golfer is eyeing the championship title for long. With the dream of making it first in the world ranking, Lee had her season first win at the Kroger Queen City Championship. Although her two wins might look less compared to the above-mentioned gigantic golfing figures, her talent cannot be diminished. After achieving the record of becoming only the third Australian golfer to reach double-digit (10) victories, Lee might just add one more stroke to the count!

5. Atthaya Thitikul: Thailand’s pride and the only Thai golfer in the Top 10 in the Race to CME Globe, Thitikul did not secure any wins this season. However, she does have the highest Top 10 finishes from the 193 players on the list. This year, Thitikul finished 12 times in the competition bracket. This might be the sweetest and perfect ending to her win-less 2023 season.

Now, are you wondering who the defending champion is?

Read More: With Their LPGA Tour Future at Stake, Here Are Top 5 Golfers Who Are Putting Up a Fierce Fight at the Annika Showdown

Defending Champion and major details about the CME Group Tour Championship

Defending Champion: It is none other than Lydia Ko. The year 2023 has not been what Ko imagined. With zero victories and only two Top 10s, the New Zealand golfer is facing a bit of a career slump. After winning the championship in 2022, Ko was expected to chart in the leaderboards. However, the reality is that she stands 101st on the Race to CME Globe list and 10th on the Rolex ranking. Although 101st on the Race to CME Globe list, Lydia Ko has the winner’s exemption, as she is the defending champion. The golfer might come back stronger in the year 2024.

CME Group Tour Championship: The event will officially run from November 16-19, 2023. Before that, it will host a two-day Pro-Am tournament and professional practice rounds. With $7 million in prize money and the winner getting $2 million, this is the highest-paying non-Major event. The Top 60 and ties will battle at the Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida. Tune in to Golf Channel from 3:00-5:00 pm and 2:00-3:00 pm on Golf Digital for the telecast of round one. The final round will be live broadcasted by NBC from 1:00-4:00 pm Sunday, November 19.

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