⛳ Fine, I’ll admit it. I’m a golf lady now. It started at Riviera in June and somewhere around my fifth Sunday leaderboard refresh, I stopped pretending otherwise. So yes, I’ll be up late for the Buick LPGA Shanghai, where Jeeno Thitikul, the 23-year-old from Thailand, is back to defend her title. Last year, she rallied from four shots down with five holes to play and won on the fifth hole of a playoff. The drama! Here’s the big picture. Think of the season as one long leaderboard where majors count extra: Thitikul and world No. 1 Nelly Korda have each won four times this year, but two of Korda’s wins were majors, which is why she’s nearly 900 points ahead. With Korda sitting out Shanghai, a win this week would help Jeeno chip away at that lead. Keep an eye on American Lauren Coughlin too, who recently became the first player in LPGA history to open a round with nine straight birdies. Let me repeat that: NINE STRAIGHT BIRDIES. That’s like winning the lottery and falling in love in the same afternoon. Final round: Saturday, October 17, 11 p.m. ET through Sunday, October 18, 4 a.m. ET on Golf Channel.
🏉 The last time the USA Women’s Eagles won three straight, flip phones were still cool and Justin Timberlake was bringing sexy back. Twenty years later they’ve done it again, beating South Africa, Ireland and Wales and climbing to No. 6 in the world. The Ireland win was pure chaos in the best way: down 24–12 at halftime in Dublin, they came back to win 40–36. Then flanker Freda Tafuna scored a hat trick to edge Wales 26–24. Now the Eagles bring the party home to Texas to host Italy in the WXV Global Series, with a little revenge on the menu after Italy won their last meeting 30–8 in 2023. They get two cracks at it, first in Texas and then in Nashville the following weekend. USA vs. Italy: Saturday, October 17, 6 p.m. ET on Paramount+.
🏀 WNBA Finals, baby! I know I’ve been including the WNBA every week, but I mean, how can I leave it out? The Valkyries are in the championship in just their second season, which is absurd, while the Atlanta Dream are making their first Finals appearance since 2013. Both teams swept their semifinal opponents and are coming in hot! And now that Atlanta has finally announced their games will be played at State Farm Arena, which holds 17,000-plus, instead of a barn in Decatur, each home court will be wild. Will Atlanta’s vets and Reese’s fire overtake the Valks, or does Coach Nakase’s knack for getting the best out of her squad give them the edge? I’m taking Golden State in seven. Game 1: Saturday, Oct 17, 3:30 p.m. ET on NBC & Peacock.
