Jeeno Thitikul and Miyu Yamashita Lead LPGA Japan Classic Field

Jeeno Thitikul and Miyu Yamashita headline the field at this week’s LPGA Toto Japan Classic.

The event is the last of four tournaments on the LPGA’s fall Asia swing.

It is co-sanctioned with the JLPGA.

The tournament is a 72-hole, no-cut event.

It is being played at the Taiheiyo Club Minori Course in Japan.

The winner’s share is $315,000.

Thitikul is the world No. 2.

She has won four times on the LPGA this season.

Her most recent victory came at the 2026 LOTTE Championship in the United States.

Yamashita won for the third time on the LPGA in 2026 last week at the Maybank Championship.

She currently ranks fourth in the world.

She also leads the LPGA’s Vare Trophy race for lowest scoring average.

Nelly Korda and Haeran Ryu are ineligible for that trophy.

Five past champions are in the field this week.

They are Nasa Hataoka (2025, 2018), Rio Takeda (2024), Ai Suzuki (2019), Mi Hyang Lee (2014) and Jiyai Shin (2010, 2008).

Four Japanese players have won a total of six events on the LPGA in 2026.

Three of those were first-time winners: Yuri Yoshida, Yuna Nishimura and Shiho Kuwaki.

Last year five different players from Japan won on the LPGA.

Five different Japanese players have won majors over the past three seasons.

Shiho Kuwaki is the reigning AIG Women’s British Open champion.

She won that title in a playoff against Esther Henseleit last August at Royal Lytham in England.

She has won twice on the JLPGA since that major victory, including a JLPGA major.

She moved into the top 10 in the world for the first time on the eve of this tournament.

Kuwaki has deferred her LPGA membership until 2027.

She is known for her long eyelashes, Loudmouth clothing and distinctive yellow ball.

After her British Open win she returned to the JLPGA and posted six top-3 finishes in her next 10 starts.

During the pre-tournament press conference Yamashita was asked why so many Japanese players are succeeding on the LPGA.

“I think most of Japanese courses are very demanding, especially with narrow fairway, so you will be required to have a good ball-striking,” Yamashita said.

“That’s why I think Japanese player perform really well in the U.S.”

Thitikul agreed on the difficulty of Japanese course setups.

She added that Japanese players have “the best” short games.

“The short game is just amazing, and then I think that’s why they can survive on the tour,” Thitikul said.

“Either it’s going to be a long course or either it’s going to be a short course, that they can be able to adapt on every course that they play.”

Beyond the competition, a separate story has drawn attention this week.

Singha Corporation released an eight-minute film titled “Dear Jeeno” on October 9, 2026.

The film was created with Ogilvy Thailand.

It highlights Thitikul’s grandfather, who encouraged her to take up golf when she was six years old.

Her grandfather’s initial intention was simply to help her exercise and manage her allergies.

Her family traveled from Ratchaburi to Bangkok every weekend for golf lessons.

At the time the eventual success of that pursuit was far from certain.

The film brings Singha’s “Believe Before the World Does” philosophy to life.

Ogilvy Thailand developed a film-within-a-film concept for the project.

The team first recorded Thitikul’s grandfather speaking about her childhood and his confidence in her.

Thitikul was then invited to what she believed was a normal interview shoot.

Instead she was shown her grandfather’s recorded messages for the first time.

Cameras captured her unscripted reaction as she watched.

The film combines two perspectives on the same journey: a grandfather reflecting on the young girl he encouraged, and a granddaughter discovering the depth of that belief.

“We felt that if we made it truly authentic, without adding anything contrived, we could let the story unfold naturally,” said Thasorn Boonyanate, chief creative officer at Ogilvy Thailand.

The film was released through Thitikul’s personal Instagram account.

Thitikul has recorded 11 LPGA Tour wins in her career.

She is currently ranked world No. 1.

A lighter moment also emerged from the pre-tournament press conference.

Thitikul revealed that her caddie, Banpot Bunpisansaree — known as Gong Banpot — made an unusual request.

A special toilet is on display near the putting green as a prize for the winner.

Thitikul said her caddie asked, “If you win, can I get it?”

“We saw that it’s beside the putting green, I guess,” Thitikul said in a video clip shared by Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols.

“And then my caddie says, ‘Is it a toilet?’ I was like, yes, and then like, what is it for?