Funny enough, Anne-Marie Palli, one of the two French players that Boutier surpassed with her victory at the LPGA Drive On Championship, got to watch her younger counterpart take home her third career title at Superstition Mountain. It was a special moment for the two-time LPGA Tour winner, made even more so by an interesting coincidence that Palli and Boutier share when it comes to their first two Tour victories.

“It's wonderful for (Celine) to win. What's so fun, and I made her aware, she won in Australia, she won in Atlantic City and here, and Atlantic City and (Arizona) are the two tournaments I won as well on Tour,” said Palli. “(Celine is) a hard worker. She's a great player and she's very nice. I'm very excited for her. She always impressed me. I see her gaining more confidence year after year, and it shows on Tour. She's been getting better and better all the time, and it's not finished.”

Despite that prophetic prediction, things quieted down for Boutier after her win in Arizona. She missed two cuts and picked up two top-five finishes in her next nine starts, including a tie for third at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational alongside her playing partner Yuka Saso, a result that gave her plenty of confidence heading into the Tour’s European swing.

Little did she know what was on the horizon.

As the LPGA Tour’s leading French player, The Amundi Evian Championship in Evian-les-Bains, France is an event that’s always circled on Boutier’s calendar, and it’s one that every Frenchwoman in the field would like to win at some point in their career. But in her six previous appearances in the event, Boutier just never seemed to get things going at Evian Resort Golf Club, missing two cuts and recording a tournament-best finish of T29 in both 2014 as an amateur and in 2021.

So, ahead of the 2023 edition of the event, Boutier’s expectations were heavily tempered. But with all eyes of an exuberant home-country crowd watching her every shot, that thought process ultimately paid off for the LPGA Tour champion.

Boutier opened with a strong 66 and backed it up with rounds of 69 and 67 on Friday and Saturday in Evian-les-Bains to hold a three-shot lead over Nasa Hataoka heading into the final round. Sunday saw Boutier at her best both mentally and physically as she held off the chasers, making one bogey and four birdies to post a 68, which was good enough to win by a whopping six shots over defending champion Brooke Henderson.

While the win was significant for the Frenchwoman as it was her first major victory since joining the LPGA Tour in 2017, it was also historic for The Amundi Evian Championship as Boutier became the tournament’s first-ever French champion.

Celine Boutier’s Breakout 2023 Season on the LPGA Tour

Celine Boutier’s patience finally paid off.

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