S. Korean golfers are ranked in Top 10 of PGA tournament

Four South Korean golfers, including winner Kim Joo-hyung, are ranked in the Top 10 list of the Shriners Children's Open on the PGA Tour. This is the new record for the number of South Korean players ranked in the Top 10 of a PGA tournament.

Kim Seong-hyun, who debuted in this season’s PGA Tour, tied for fourth place with the final record of a 20-under 264 after shooting 50-under 66 in the fourth round at the Shriners Children's Open, which ended in TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas on Monday. Defending champion Im Sung-jae was ranked in seventh position (19-under 265), followed by Kim Si-woo in eighth position (18-under 266). Lee Kyoung-hoon was placed in the 37th position (12-under 272), and An Byeong-hun found himself in the shared 44th position (11-under 273).

Until the latest PGA tournament, the records of the most number of South Korean players in the Top 10 of a PGA tournament were at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Wyndham Championship in 2019. Im Sung-jae, Kang Sung-hoon, and An Byeong-hun made the Top 10 list at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, each tied for third, sixth, and tenth positions, respectively. An Byeong-hun, Kim Si-woo, and Im Sung-jae were ranked in the Top 10 at the Wyndham Championship, in third, fifth, and jointed shared position, respectively.

South Korean players won three tournaments last season, setting a new record for the most number of wins per season. Im Sung-jae, Lee Kyoung-hoon, and Kim Joo-hyung won the Shriners Children's Open, AT&T Byron Nelson, and Wyndham Championship, respectively. As young South Korean players, including Kim Joo-hyung and Kim Seong-hyun, are participating in the PGA Tour this season as ‘full seeds,’ they are determined to break the last year’s record this season.


Dong-Wook Kim creating@donga.com