NAPLES, Fla. — The CME Group Tour Championship’s much-anticipated duel between Jin Young Ko and Nelly Korda for the LPGA Tour’s Rolex Player of the Year delivered over the weekend. After the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the world won each of the last two tournaments heading into the final event of the LPGA season, the stage was set for one last battle.

Ko emerged victorious at Tiburón Golf Club, shooting a 63 on Sunday to finish at a tournament-record 23-under par and defeat Nasa Hataoka by one stroke. The win was the South Korean’s 12th career LPGA title and earned her Player of the Year honors for the second time in three years.

Here are my five takeaways from the tour finale.

1. Jin Young Ko puts exclamation point on three-year LPGA reign

Ko has ten victories over the last three years, the most of any golfer on the LPGA Tour over that span. The next closest is Nelly Korda with six. With the victory Sunday, Ko became one of 14 golfers to win two Player of the Year awards in the LPGA’s history, and she accomplished it in 81 starts. Ko backed up her win at the 2020 CME Group Tour Championship, becoming the first player to defend her title and the first to win five times in a single year since Ariya Jutanugarn in 2016, doing so over her final nine starts of the season.

Ko accomplished all of this despite playing on an injured left wrist; she spent a half hour with a physio, and instead of warming up on the range as she usually would, the 26-year-old only took swings with a 52-degree wedge to get loose. The lack of preparation did not stop her from displaying the full prowess of her game, hitting a mind-numbing 63 consecutive greens in regulation to close out the tournament.

“Honestly, it was definitely the ‘Jin Young Ko Show’ today,” Korda said. “It was really cool to witness. Obviously, I wish I could have kind of given it a better run.”

A fantastic finish to a fantastic season 🏆

Watch highlights from the final round of the @CMEGroupLPGA! 👇 pic.twitter.com/OwHk9lJq3e

— LPGA (@LPGA) November 22, 2021

When Ko won $1.2 million last year, she bought a house in Dallas with the money. This year, she said the $1.5 million winner’s check is going into her savings account.

2. Nasa Hataoka shines, eyes 2022 majors

The five-time Tour winner birdied 17 of the last 28 holes to nearly catch Ko on Sunday, finishing just one stroke behind her. But instead of getting caught up in the duel between Ko and Korda, the world No. 8 stuck to her plan at Tiburón Golf Club.

“I have one thing in my mind — routine,” Hataoka explained. “There were a few times where there was a lot of pressure, but I was able to think simple, which helped me a lot today.”

The 22-year-old finished as runner-up at the U.S. Women’s Open in June, losing in a playoff to Yuka Saso at Olympic Club. It was the second time Hataoka had lost in a playoff at a major after the 2018 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. The Japanese star continues to use a U.S. Women’s Open ball marker to remind her how close she was to her goal of winning a major in her first five years on tour.

“This year was the fifth year, so I really wanted to win [a major] this year,” Hataoka said. “Obviously it won’t change, my goal won’t change. I still have strong feelings for winning majors.”

3. Nelly Korda’s historic season overshadowed

The world No. 1 maintained perspective on her season as she walked off the course in Naples on Sunday. The four-time Tour winner and Olympic gold medalist in 2021 became the first American to surge to the top of the Rolex World Rankings since Stacy Lewis in 2014. While losing out on Player of the Year was a disappointment, Korda learned this year just how much she can accomplish on the LPGA Tour.

“If I set my mind to it, I can do anything,” Korda said. “I had a good year, and I’m just going to go back and kind of think about my year and kind of let it kind of soak in, which I’m super excited about, and get ready for next year.”

Are you kidding?! 🤯@NellyKorda eagles 17 to take a share of the lead at the @CMEGroupLPGA 👏 pic.twitter.com/Yqeau1Yjv6

— LPGA (@LPGA) November 20, 2021

Korda would’ve gone home with even more hardware if not for the LPGA’s Vare Trophy minimum requirement of 70 rounds played during the year. With her 17-under finish at the Tour Championship, the 23-year-old averaged 68.774 in 2021, besting Ko’s 68.866 for the lowest score on tour. Korda finished 62 rounds this year, while Ko played 67. But it was Lydia Ko who won the Vare Trophy after finishing with the third-best scoring average of 63.329 in 73 rounds of play.

Adding to the historic nature of Korda and Ko’s battle this weekend, 2021 marked the first time in the 72-year history of the LPGA that two players averaged scores in the 68s in a single season. Only Annika Sorenstam in 2002 (68.7) and 2004 (68.7) and Sei Young Kim in 2020 (68.69) have accomplished that feat previously.

4. A streak continues at the Tour Championship

Players ranked No. 1 or No. 2 in the world have won eight of the last nine Tour Championships. The best and brightest on tour continue to shine at Tiburón Golf Club since the tournament moved there in 2013.

The four players tied for the lead going into Sunday’s final round — Celine Boutier, Hataoka, Korda and Ko — all won on tour this season. Boutier, Korda and Ko combined for the last six LPGA Tour victories, while Hataoka won twice. The final grouping of Hataoka, Ko and Korda featured three of the four players who won multiple times in 2021, combining for ten wins.

5. CME’s new purse shows increased commitment to women’s golf

On Friday, the LPGA announced its new schedule for 2022, headlined by CME increasing the tournament purse to $7 million in 2022, up from $5 million this year. In addition, the winner will receive a new first-place prize of $2 million, more than Ko’s and Sei Young Kim’s $1.5 million prize in 2019.

The investment in the Tour Championship has surged in recent years, with the first-place check growing 300 percent from $500,000 in 2018 to $2 million in 2022.

Kent Paisley is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports covering golf and the LPGA. He also contributes to Golf Digest. Follow him on Twitter @KentPaisley.

Las Vegas Aces star forward A'ja Wilson is teaming up with Nike and Danish toymaker LEGO as part of the two brands' new multi-year collaboration, the apparel giant announced on Thursday morning.

According to the release, the partnership aims to "inspire kids everywhere to play both on and off the court."

Nike and LEGO's collaboration will include experiential activations in the US, UK, and China this summer in conjunction with the United Nations' International Day of Play on June 11th.

The companies are also releasing product collections, beginning with the 1,180-piece LEGO Nike Dunk set, which features an iconic Nike Dunk sneaker, a brick basketball, and the "Dunk" slogan.

Three-time WNBA MVP Wilson will support the project "by helping engage kids through a reimagined world of play that will come to life across digital channels," with more information on her involvement to come.

Fresh off the launch her smash-hit A'One signature shoe, Wilson has become one of Nike's most prominent athletes. Her addition to the Nike x LEGO team comes on the heels of a lucrative six-year contract extension between Wilson and the sportswear brand late last year.

"I have loved playing with LEGO bricks since I was a kid and know that my creativity and play helped me not only in sports but also at school and in life," said Wilson.

How to buy drops from the Nike x LEGO collection

The LEGO Nike Dunk set will hit shelves on July 1st, though it's currently available to preorder online.

The first Nike footwear, apparel, and accessories products from the collaboration will drop in the brand's retail locations and online on August 1st.

The WNBA is dominating the air waves in its 2025 season, with last weekend's slate of games blowing past yet another TV viewership record.

The New York Liberty's 90-88 win over the Indiana Fever averaged 2.22 million viewers on CBS, with the Saturday showdown marking the second-highest WNBA viewership in network history.

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That clash follows a record-setting 2025 season tip-off, in which ABC's May 17th doubleheader became the most-watched WNBA opening weekend ever on ESPN's platforms, earning a 115% viewership increase over last year's regular-season coverage.

Notably, both New York and Indiana contributed to that record-setting initial Saturday slate. A 92-78 Liberty win over the Las Vegas Aces averaged 1.3 million viewers, before the Fever's 93-58 defeat of the Chicago Sky claimed an average audience of 2.7 million fans.

The closing matchup between Indiana and Chicago made even more history, peaking at 3.1 million viewers to become the most-watched regular-season WNBA game in 25 years.

The Midwest rivals also tallied the second-largest audience in league history, surpassed only by the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game's 3.44 million viewers.

With Fever star Caitlin Clark set to miss at least four games with a quad strain, concerns over lags in attendance and viewership have started to crop up this week.

Those fears, however, might be overblown, as 11,183 fans packed Baltimore's CFG Bank Arena to watch the Washington Mystics take on the Fever on Wednesday night — while Clark looked on from the bench.

The Washington Mystics have continued to impress in the early 2025 WNBA season, earning another big win on Wednesday with an 83-77 victory over a Caitlin Clark-less Indiana Fever.

As the star guard watched from the sidelines, the Mystics leaned into their depth, securing the win behind a 21-point, nine-rebound performance from guard Brittney Sykes.

Now sitting sixth in the league with a 3-3 record, Washington's rebuild appears to be moving ahead of schedule, with rookie duo Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron looking pro-ready from the jump.

Seizing their opportunity as day-one starters, the pair put up a collective 29 points against Indiana on Wednesday, joining Sykes and forward Shakira Austin as the only Mystics to finish in double digits.

Indiana, on the other hand, looked shaky without their injured young superstar.

Despite veteran forward DeWanna Bonner coming off the bench to lead the Fever with 21 points on Wednesday night, Indiana dropped to 2-3 on the season with Clark out for at least three more games.

"We weren't sharp enough to be a contender for anything tonight," Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell, who led Indiana's starters with 14 points, told reporters after the loss. "I think getting punched in the mouth early is humbling, because it shows where we need to be."

How to watch the Mystics and Fever in this week's WNBA action

Both Washington and Indiana will be back in action on Friday night, when the Mystics will test their form against the surging New York Liberty while the Fever tip off against the still-winless Connecticut Sun at 7:30 PM ET.

Both games will air live on ION.

With the 16-team UEFA Euro 2025 set to kick off in Switzerland in less than five weeks, UEFA is seizing the opportunity to expand its global footprint following a breakout 2022 tournament.

The continental governing body is starting stateside, with Fox Sports announcing Wednesday that its platforms will air 20 matches from the upcoming 31-game European Championship live — marking the women's side's largest US media deal on record.

With no major events scheduled for the USWNT, international women's soccer will take center stage this summer, as the Euro, Copa América, and Africa Cup of Nations all return in July.

Fox Sports will also bring Copa América action to US viewers for the first time ever this summer, with broadcast details still to come.

England raises prize money for Lionesses

England is also upping its investment, with the FA agreeing to pay the Lionesses a record £1.7 million bonus package — nearly $2.3 million — should they successfully defend their 2022 title.

This year's total more than doubles the amount England players received for reaching the 2023 World Cup final.

While exact sums will vary, player payouts would average £73,000 each (over $98,000) — up some £18,000 ($24,000) from the Lionesses' 2022 earnings.

The move follows UEFA's earlier decision to double its own prize pool in 2025, raising the total purse to £34 million (almost $46 million), including an extra £4.3 million ($5.8 million) for the winner.

How to watch the 2025 Euros this summer

The 2025 European Championship kicks off on July 2nd when Iceland faces Finland at 12 PM ET before Switzerland takes on Norway at 3 PM ET, live on Fox.