Sei Young Kim led the match BMW Women’s Championship at the end of the first, second and third rounds this week at Pine Beach Golf Links in South Korea, but in the final round the nerves set in.
The 32-year-old South Korean pro hadn’t won a tournament since 2020, but she was in position to end the drought on Sunday – and then she missed an easy birdie putt on the first hole and a three-putt for bogey on the third.
“I was very nervous from the beginning. Since it’s been a while since I played in the last group, I wasn’t sure if this was real. So I was really asking myself questions,” Kim said. “…My dad always told me when I was nervous, ‘Don’t back down,’ and I tried to remember that mentality.”
Kim didn’t make another bogey and made birdies at 5, 6, 7 and 9. She added two more at 14 and 15 to sign for a five-under 67 and cruised to the finish. At the age of 24, she defeated runner-up NASA Hataoka by four. Celine Boutier and A Lim Kim finished in third place at 18 under.
It is Kim’s 13th career victory and she is now a record 27th different winner on the LPGA Tour this season.
“I think it shows how strong the LPGA Tour is right now,” Kim said.
In 2019, Kim won three times, including the CME Group Tour Championship. She won twice more in 2020, culminating in her only major title at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in October 2020 (which pushed her to No. 2 in the world). A month later she won the Annika, but she has not won another trophy since.
As the drought continued, her self-confidence waned.
“There hasn’t been a single victory in the last five years. I was afraid this would continue for even longer,” she said. “I just wanted to do my best, whether it takes five years or 10 years. I think it’s really important that you find the momentum and stay on that track. Staying on track, I think, is one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned. I want to use this momentum to achieve more victories in my career in the future.”
Kim started the day with a four-shot lead over Yealimi Noh and Hataoka, but Noh played the final 14 holes in even par after being two under in the first four. Hataoka was one under after 11 and then birdied four of her last five, and while that late surge was good enough for second place, it wasn’t close enough to scare Kim.
“I think it took me more than a decade to win in front of my family and friends,” Kim said. “It means so much to me. It’s a tournament that I really wanted to win, and I find that I can’t express myself in everything. I got really good energy from all the fans.”
#Sei #Young #Kim #ends #winless #drought #helps #break #LPGA #record