Seo Kyo-rim capped her “Sol-lim” rivalry with Kim Min-sol, born the same year in 2006, with a victory to become the first to reach four wins this season.
Seo carded a final total of 8-under 280 at the BC Card·Hankyung 48th KLPGA Championship on the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour, which ended on the 23rd at Pocheon Hills Country Club (par 72) in Gyeonggi Province. She then defeated Kim, who settled for par, by making a birdie in the first playoff hole.
On the playoff held at the 18th hole (par 5), Seo left about 70 meters to the pin and dropped her third shot within 1 meter, then did not miss the birdie putt. Kim’s second shot with a wood from the fairway was mishit and pulled to the left, and her third shot from about 60 meters came up short, handing over the momentum.
Seo, in her second year, won her first career title at the Celltrion Queens Masters in June, added a second win two weeks later at the Inca <a href="https://bitcomme.com/isca-forms-taskforce-to-bolster-financial-reporting/” title=”ISCA forms taskforce to bolster financial reporting”>Financial The Heaven Masters, and showed a formidable pace with two straight victories, following last week’s Medihill·Hankook Ilbo Championship. Throughout this season, whenever Kim won, Seo would follow with a win of her own, prompting her to say, “I want to be the first to reach four wins.” She made good on those words. Seo, who last year had to carry the label of “Rookie of the Year without a win,” has been building a remarkable season in which she wins seemingly at will, thanks to markedly improved putting and mental game in her second year.
Seo started as the sole leader, three shots ahead of second-place Kim. But she was shaky through the middle of the round. With four bogeys through the 10th hole, she lost four strokes and seemed to be drifting out of contention.
However, Seo did not miss the opening when Kim, who had been holding up well with one birdie, wobbled slightly with two bogeys on the back nine. When Seo made a birdie of just over 2.5 meters at the 16th hole (par 3), Kim missed her par putt, and both easily picked up birdies at the 18th hole to force a playoff.
In the regulation round, Seo lost two strokes while Kim had to settle for cutting one stroke.
Seo and Kim had been sharing the lead in wins, each with three victories this season. As it happened, the four tournaments held in June were won in the order Seo-Kim-Seo-Kim, sharpening their rivalry into clear relief. Fans call this rivalry the “Sol-lim showdown” or “Im-sol showdown,” after the two players’ names. In this tournament, they competed in the same group throughout rounds one through four, and then played together through the one playoff hole.
Park Min-ji, who had been challenging for a career-record 21st win, the most on the KLPGA Tour, cut three strokes to finish first at 7-under and waited for the result of the final group. She was tied for the lead until then, raising hopes of the record 21st win, but Park’s record was dashed when Seo and Kim both made birdies on the final hole. She settled for sole third place at 7-under.
Moon Jeong-min and Ko Ji-woo finished tied for fourth at 6-under.
#KLPGA#SeoKyorim#KimMinsol#KLPGAChampionship#ParkMinji#KoreanGolf
Original reporting by Park Min-young for Seoul Economic Daily.
AI-translated from Korean. Quotes from foreign sources are based on Korean-language reports and may not reflect exact original wording.
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