'Youngest Champ' Kim Juhyung's Return "Opening Match Victory GO"

Korean Tour 2021 Season Opening DB Insurance Promy Open Day 1: 4-Under Par Tied 4th, Lee Se-jin Leads at 6-Under Par

Kim Juhyung is examining the putting line on the 7th hole on the first day of the DB Insurance Promy Open. Photo by KPGA

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] The return of Kim Joo-hyung (19, CJ Logistics), the youngest champion in the Korea Tour, is here.

On the 15th, at the Oak and Maple Courses (par 72, 7,147 yards) of Oak Valley Golf Club in Wonju, Gangwon Province, the first day of the KPGA 2021 season opener, the DB Insurance Pro-Am Open (total prize money 700 million KRW), Kim posted a 4-under-par and tied for 4th place. Rookie Lee Se-jin (20) and Kim Min-jun (31) are tied for the lead at 6-under-par, while Lee Joon-seok (Australia) is in 3rd place at 5-under-par 67, just one stroke behind, in pursuit. 2019 champion Lee Tae-hoon (Canada) is challenging to defend his title after two years, tied for 21st at 2-under-par 70.

Kim Joo-hyung is a next-generation prospect who made waves by winning the Asian (APGA) Tour Panasonic Open in November 2019 at just 17 years old. Born in Seoul, he moved to China at age two, and later lived in the Philippines, Australia, and Thailand. Last year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the APGA Tour was suspended, so he competed on the Korean Tour and successfully made a smooth transition by finishing 2nd at the Woosung Construction Aramir CC Busan Gyeongnam Open, entering as a top-ranked player in the world rankings.

He narrowly lost in a playoff to Lee Ji-hoon730 (35), which was a disappointment. However, Kim immediately avenged this by winning the KPGA Gunsan CC Open a week later. At 18 years and 21 days old, he broke Lee Sang-hee’s (29) record as the youngest winner at the 2011 NH Nonghyup Open (19 years, 6 months, 10 days), and shortened Kim Kyung-tae’s (34) record for the shortest time from joining the tour to winning (4 months, 3 days) by 109 days. Rising to 92nd in the world rankings, he even received an invitation to the PGA Championship, a major on the U.S. PGA Tour.

This marked Kim Joo-hyung’s starting point for experiencing the PGA Tour in the United States. He gained experience in six events, including a tie for 15th at the Puerto Rico Open. "This year, I will focus on the domestic stage first and then challenge the PGA Korn Ferry (second-tier) Tour Qualifying Tournament (QT) in the second half of the year," he said. On this day, he recorded six birdies and two bogeys. His ‘needle-like iron shots’ stood out, missing the green only three times, with a maximum drive of 333.70 yards.

Lee Se-jin fired a 6-under-par with one eagle, five birdies, and one bogey. It is surprising that this tournament is his KPGA debut. In 2019, Mungyeong-jun Moon (39, NH Nonghyup Bank), Do-yeop Moon (30, DB Insurance), and Jung-woo Ham (27) joined the group tied for 4th place. Lee Tae-hee (37) made headlines off the course by acing the 5th hole (par 3) with a 7-iron. He is tied for 17th at 3-under-par. Last year’s double crown winner of the Order of Merit and money title, Kim Tae-hoon (36, Bizplay), remained tied for 21st place.