Im Jin-hee, the "effort fairy" from Part 3... "I'm going to conquer this LPGA."
Im Jin-hee, the "effort fairy" from Part 3... "I'm going to conquer this LPGA."
Blog Article
"There was Nelly Korda next to me, and Lexy Thompson in front of me... Talking to Lydia Ko, I felt like I was really on the LPGA Tour. Then after I missed the cut four tournaments (including one European tour), I was wide awake."
Im Jin-hee, 27, is easygoing, as she enters her second year of the LPGA tour. She has a unique way of speaking in which she talks objectively as if it were none of her business. Such conversation draws people's attention. The Dong-A Ilbo met her on the phone while she was training in Florida. She has not used a mobile phone since high school, saying that she interferes with golf. She also talked to her mother on the phone this time.
Im Jin-hee started to become a golfer when she was a ninth grader. Usually, she started playing golf later than other players who started elementary school. She has no experience in playing for a national team. She started her professional career in the third division and became the top player in the first division. After winning six titles including one in 2021, one in 2022, and four in 2023, she entered the LPGA last year. She ranked second in the rookie list in her first year and finished 18th in the prize money list (1,378,18 dollars). Her performance is assessed to have been a success. She finished second at the Annika Driven competition in November last year and posted a top 10 record six times. She was nicknamed "Buddhist statue" because of her lack of facial expression, and "the worm of practice" and "the incarnation of hard work" due to her strong self-confidence that she can "make effort" due to her ample amount of training.
The Founders Cup, which kicks off on February 6, starts this year. He is supplementing his weaknesses based on last year's statistics. "Last year, I practiced as if I was living in a bunker during the winter training because my bunker save rate (even if a ball goes into the bunker, he scores better than par or par) was low," he said. Last year, his average drive shot was 260.88 yards (68th) with a fairway settlement rate of 69.10 percent (109th), the number of putts when hitting the green (30th) and the bunker save rate of 40.91 percent (96th). This is where he will go.
Though she belatedly jumped into the LPGA field, she said, "It was a precious time for me to gain confidence and a year of great joy and sorrow. I was able to use myself only after adapting to the course." Although many experts viewed her chances of success, she failed to predict that she would be successful. Her strength lies in her ability to garner birdies. Last year, she ranked ninth (70.43 pars) in average and sixth (339 birdies) in average. She also boasts stable score management ability, as she finished 11th in 21 cuts in 24 competitions. "I am still growing as a golfer. I like aggressive golf. I am so proud of myself that I ranked sixth in average birdie rate by going around courses that I do not know anything about. If I make big mistakes based on my experiences this year, I think I will get better soon," she said.
As the LPGA stage where the world's best players compete, I learned a lot. "Saigo Mao (Japan), who won the LPGA Rookie of the Year award, plays very upright even though she does not play short. Gino Thitikul (Thailand) is good at judging the flow of golf. Lydia Ko said, "I am good at short games, but I was good at bunker shots. Patty Tawatanakit (Thailand) was impressive when she adjusted the driver's distance to 20-30 meters. Even if I make a mistake in the second shot, I overcome it by playing short games around the green. Nelly Korda is not good at anything, and she is good at everything. They were all amazing, maybe because they were top-class players."
Then, what did he feel? "He can't do anything like Korda, or he has to have his own strengths." In Korea, course settings are similar even though courses vary. The U.S. has a wide variety of courses, including long courses, narrow courses, easy courses that require 10 under par per day, and courses that are too difficult to even par. "As I tend to perform well on a difficult course, I can reduce the number of pars if I set the direction well," Lim said. "The challenge is to reduce mistakes I made in the last three or four holes, and to make it a section where I can reduce the number of pars."
Korean women's golf, which used to dominate the LPGA, is showing no strength in recent years. Last year, it had three wins, the smallest number in 13 years since 2011. "Veteran Kim Se-young told me that. There are 15 fewer Korean golfers than when there were more wins, but young Korean players are now trying to join the LPGA tour again. If we do what we do without worrying, our time will come again," said Im Jin-hee.
Conditions are not promising this year. Main sponsors have disappeared due to economic instability ahead of this season 스포츠토토. There have been changes, too. She has hired a caddie who used to be with Tsang Yani (Taiwan) in his prime. "I have never forgotten my dream of winning the LPGA tour and ranking No. 1 in the world in the future," she said. "I will definitely experience lifting the trophy in the LPGA tour."