[2021 New Start⑨] '20-year-old Young Gun' Kim Mingyu "This Year, All In on the Korean Tour~"

Secured 2021 Season Seed with 22nd Prize Last Year, Equipped with 'Jjanmul Putting' from European Tour Experience: "Goal is to Win and Become Rookie of the Year"

Kim Min-gyu is challenging for the Korean Tour Rookie of the Year title this year.

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] "All in on the Korean Tour."

The ‘20-year-old young gun’ Kim Min-gyu (CJ Logistics) is dedicating himself to the domestic stage this year. He was selected as the youngest national team member in 2015 and is a next-generation prospect. In 2017, he immediately advanced to the European Tour, achieving two wins on the EuroPro Tour (3rd tier), and in 2018, he became the youngest winner ever (17 years and 64 days) at the D+D Real Czech Challenge on the Challenge Tour (2nd tier). Last year, he returned to Korea due to COVID-19 and confidently secured his card by ranking 22nd in the Korean Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA) money list.

Kim Min-gyu became a ‘draw card’ by entering tournaments through various routes such as Monday qualifiers, finishing in the ‘top 5’ in previous events, and as a recommended player. His surprise runner-up finish at the KPGA Gunsan CC Open, which he entered through the July Monday qualifier, was the starting point. The following week, he recorded back-to-back runner-up finishes at the KPGA Open. At that time, he narrowly missed a winning eagle from just 2 meters on the 17th hole (par 5) in the final round, which left some regret. Afterwards, he participated as a ‘recommended player’ in five tournaments including the KPGA Championship, ultimately finishing 22nd in earnings (13.7 million KRW).

It is interesting that Kim Min-gyu is a single-digit handicap player with an average drive distance of 277.98 yards (78th). However, his fairway hit rate is 65.08% (25th), showing that he competes with ‘precise shots.’ It is worth noting that he has mastered various course strategies on different European courses. Above all, his average putts per hole of 1.76 (14th) demonstrate his powerful ‘stingy putting.’ "Last year, without a card, I missed important opportunities," he said, "but this time will be different."

After recently completing a training camp in Jeju Island, he is focusing on improving his iron shot accuracy at the 88CC practice range. Kim Min-gyu, who said "last year’s experience was a great help," also introduced, "First, it is important to keep the fairway and effectively approach the green with a direct strategy. Starting this month, I will begin tuning my competitive shot sense through practice rounds." He will make his first appearance at the 2021 season opener, the DB Insurance Pro-Am Open (total prize money 500 million KRW), held on April 15 at Oak Valley Golf Club in Wonju, Gangwon Province.

His goal is naturally his first victory and, furthermore, to win the prestigious Rookie of the Year award, which can only be earned once in a lifetime. Instead of the European Tour in the second half of the year, he is considering challenging the PGA Tour Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament (QT). Kim Min-gyu expressed his ambition, saying, "I have a special feeling competing on the stage I watched as a child on TV broadcasts and as a gallery. I want to avenge last year’s runner-up finishes and rise to the top rookie position as Rookie of the Year."