Yoo Hae-ran earns her second LPGA title after rollercoaster finish

South Korean golfer Yoo Hae-ran, who won the U.S. Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Rookie of the Year award in 2023, won her second LPGA Tour title after four days of rollercoaster play.

Yoo shot an 8-under 64 with nine birdies and one bogey in the final four rounds of the LPGA FM Championship on Monday at TPC Boston in Norton, Massachusetts. With a final total of 15-under-par 273, Yoo tied with Jin-young Ko and entered a playoff on the 18th hole, where Yoo recorded a par while Ko bogeyed. She earned 570,000 U.S. dollars for her victory.

It took 11 months for Yoo to hold a championship trophy again, as she recorded her first victory at the 2023 Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. The FM Championship is a new event that was established this year, and Yoo became the inaugural champion. It was the second LPGA Tour victory for a South Korean this season, following Yang Hee-young at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in June.

After a solid start to the tournament, tied for second at 3-under-par on day one, Yoo shot 10-under-par 62, her career-best for a single round, on day two to take a quick six-stroke lead. With ten birdies and no bogeys on that day, it looked like she could easily win the tournament. However, Yoo dropped six shots in the third round and slipped to a tie for sixth place, four shots behind leader Ko. Five bogeys and two double bogeys followed three birdies. The final round was the exact opposite. She carded nine birdies until her first bogey on the par-3 16th hole.

“I’ve had a lot of chances (to win) this year and missed them, so it had been a challenging journey to get my second win. I didn’t want to miss it today,” Yoo said. ”It was so hard to win the first one last year and again to win the second one today.”

“I think my performance was all over the place in the second through fourth rounds of this tournament, and that’s the way golf is,” she said. “I tried to believe in myself. I’m grateful to my teammates, volunteers, and family. I hope my next win will come a little easier.”


Heon-Jae Lee uni@donga.com