Ji-ho Yang, who won his first championship in 15 years. [사진=KPGA·민수용]
The second shot on the 18th hole (par 5) of the 4th round of the KB Financial Live Championship (total prize money 700 million won) held at Blackstone Icheon Golf Club (par 72) in Icheon-si, Gyeonggi-do on May 29th.
The wife of Yang Ji-ho (33-year-old Kim Yoo-jeong), who wears a bungee and pretends to be a caddy with a hand cart, advises her husband to hit iron instead of wood. It’s a black stone with a high level of difficulty, so don’t overdo it.
Yang Ji-ho chose the iron without being stubborn. Then he hung up and made a birdie opportunity. The birdie putt unfortunately misses and digs. Yang Ji-ho took off his hat and greeted the gallery. He also laughed out loud with his companions.
After hitting 71 rounds (1 under par) in round 1, 75 shots (3 over par) in round 2, and 69 shots in round 3 (3 under par), he hit 66 shots (6 under par) that day.
281 strokes (7-under par) in total. While chatting with his wife, he waited for Park Seong-guk, 34, to play from the champion group.
Park Seong-guk went into a deep rough on the 17th hole (par 4) tee shot to the right. The next two layups were unsuccessful. In the end, he committed a double bogey. It is the moment when they fall down from the joint lead to second place. Park Seong-guk bowed his head in frustration.
On the 18th hole, Park Seong-guk made a strong attack. Because he has to chase two strokes. The ball didn’t help. The tee shot went rough on the left side of the fairway, and the second shot fell into the bunker. The bunker shot didn’t go alone. He failed the eagle. This is the moment when Jiho Yang’s victory is confirmed. Park Seong-guk recorded a par. A total of 283 strokes (5-under par) is the runners-up by two strokes.
Ji-ho Yang enjoyed his first victory in his career. It is an emotion that he enjoys after his 133rd competition since his 2008 debut. He hugged his wife lightly. Then he wept quietly. He wore a yellow jacket and won the prize money of 140 million won and the championship cup. He lifted the trophy high into the sky. It is a moment to release the pain of 15 years.
The Genesis Points were awarded 1,000 points, which is a grade 3 score, and the Tour Card received 2 years. It is the best gift for him and his wife, who went back and forth between the Srixon (Part 2) tour and the Korean tour.
The couple have been together since 2018. This is the 4th year
The winning ceremony was a kiss with his wife. [사진=KPGA·민수용]
Jiho Yang, who started out on the out course (hole 1), cut four shots at once with a birdie on the 4th hole (par 4), an eagle on the 5th hole (par 3), and a birdie on the 6th hole (par 4).
The momentum continued in the second half as well. I caught birdies on the 11th, 12th, and 13th holes 3 in a row. The 15th hole (par 5) is bogey. The other 3 holes were par.
Yang Ji-ho, who visited the press conference, said, “I had no greed. It led to good results. My wife gave me advice from my side, and I had a good shot. I was confused.” “I had insomnia. I was scared before. . It was hard. I want to play the CJ Cup.”
He continued, “It was difficult to find a caddy, so I asked my wife. I thought that breathing would be good. Today, my wife told me not to overdo it. I was also very dry on the second shot of the 18th hole. The goal was to donate about 10% of it,” he added.
At the end of the interview, Yang Ji-ho delivered a message to seniors and juniors looking forward to their first win.
“Good days will come if you hold on. I thought that winning the championship in 15 years would be difficult. Psychological stress comes. If you jump over it, good days will come. Young players play well, but they want to win again. Fast. I want to dominate.”
- reporter information
- Lee Dong-hoon
- ldhlive@ajunews.com
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