One of the largest purses in women’s golf is up for grabs this week. The $5 million PIF Saudi Ladies International takes place Feb. 13-15 at Riyadh Golf Club in Saudi Arabia. The event, which is part of the Ladies European Tour, is headlined by No. 3 Ruoning Yin, No. 4 Jeeno Thitikul, ninth-ranked Charley Hull and defending champion Patty Tavatanakit, who ranks 25th.
This year’s tournament features 112 players and a new team format. The teams, which are drafted ahead of the event, will compete over the first two days for a $500,000 prize. A cut is then made to the top 60 and ties to compete for the remaining $4.5 million purse.
Tavatanakit won on home soil last year at the Honda LPGA Thailand immediately after her emotional victory in Saudi.
“I feel like there’s always pressure,” Tavatanakit said. “You’re coming back as a defending champion. You’ve done it once. People expect you to do it again. But I could take it as a positive. Pressure is a privilege, and I’m very privileged to have that at the back of my mind.”
Yin, who won three times last season on the LPGA, skipped the first two events of the 2025 LPGA season and makes her Saudi debut this week. Though she’s the highest-ranked player in the field this week, Yin offered a different take on pressure in a pre-tournament press conference.
“No, I don’t think I feel any pressure,” said Yin. “I come out to play each week. I just try to play the best and have fun.”
Thitikul, winner of the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship, taking a first-place prize of $4 million, makes her 2025 debut this week as well ahead of the Honda LPGA Thailand event.
The LET’s Saudi-backed events remain controversial given the wide-ranging human rights abuses Saudi Arabia has been accused of, especially toward women.
Here’s a look at some of top players in the field this week in Saudi:
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Top-10 LPGA players headline the $5 million Saudi Ladies International
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