The Sparkling Lady Golfers of Korea

Aside from taekwondo, name one sport that is dominated by Koreans. Clock is ticking…1,2,3…. Okay, how about ladies golf. For the past year or so, the women of Korea have really been capturing the golf world by storm. Ever since Se Ri Pak catapulted Korea to the golfing world in 1998, Korean golfers have become byword in the sport. Every LPGA game I get to watch on TV, more often than not, there’s a Korean name, or Korean sounding name in the leaderboard. Just look at the following statistics:

- According to the latest Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking (the ranking is updated every week and is considered the official ranking in world women’s golf), as of July 27, 2009, there are 2 Koreans in the top 10: Jiyai Shin in #4 and In Kyung Kim in #8; moreover, there are 17 Koreans in the top 50, the most of any nationality, followed by the USA which has 13 and Japan with 7.

- Of the 17 tournaments already played this year, starting from the HSBC LPGA Brasil Cup last January to the Evian Masters Presented by Societe Generale held last July 23 - 26, six (6) were won by Koreans.

- Again, of the 17 concluded tournaments, there are only 2 players who have won 2 events, and one is Korean, Jiyai Shin, the other is world # 1 player, Lorena Ochoa. The rest of the 13 tournaments were won by 13 different players, 4 of which are Koreans.

- In terms of the Masters, Eun Hee Ji won the U.S. Women’s Open.

Such an ensemble of talented golfers, and I can only say WOW!!!

Out of curiosity, I started finding out how many golf courses are there in Korea. And, here is what I found out. There are at least 66 golf courses scattered from Seoul to Jeju. Here’s how the 66 golf courses are distributed:

Chungcheongnamdo – 2
Chungcheong - 2
Gangwondo – 5
Gyeonggido – 34
Gyeongsang – 9
Jejudo – 9
Jeolla – 1
Busan – 2
Seoul - 2

No wonder Korea is beaming with so many talented golfers, golf courses are aplenty in the country. Korea is a golfer’s paradise. So, when visiting Korea, aside from enjoying its sights and sounds, you can also enjoy its many excellent golf courses. If you’re the golfing enthusiast, you won’t be missing your game since you can tee-off in any of the numerous courses in Korea, you just have to make your reservations in advance.

Enjoy your round of golf and happy tee-off!!!