‘Dakgong’ Kim Hanbyeol "6-Point Victory"..."Did You See 30 Birdies in Four Days?"

'Modified Stableford' Yamaha and OwnersK Open: Kim Seonghyun Wins 3rd Career Victory, Kim Seonghyun 2nd, Bae Yongjun 3rd, Kim Juhyung 4th

Kim Hanbyeol is cheering immediately after winning on the final day of the Yamaha·Onus K Open. Photo by KPGA

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] ‘Dakgong’ Kim Han-byeol (25, SK Telecom) secured his first win of the season.

On the 25th, at Solago Golf Course in Taean, Chungnam (par 72, 7,264 yards), Kim swept up 7 birdies without any bogeys on the final day of the KPGA Korean Tour Yamaha Owners K Open (total prize money 500 million KRW), accumulating 14 points to complete a 6-point victory (58 points). This marks his third career win, 10 months after his victory at the Shinhan Donghae Open last September, with a winner’s prize of 100 million KRW. The tournament was played using the Modified Stableford scoring system.

Points were awarded as follows: albatross 8 points, eagle 5 points, birdie 2 points, par 0 points, bogey -1 point, and double bogey or worse -3 points. Kim started with a 7-point lead, steadily adding points with consecutive birdies on holes 1 and 2, and ‘stepping stone birdies’ on holes 4 and 6. In the back nine, birdies on hole 10 (par 4) and consecutive birdies on holes 15 and 16 helped him fend off challengers. He also wiped away the disappointment of finishing runner-up after a playoff last year.

Kim Han-byeol debuted in 2019 and won his first title at the Hazzys Golf KPGA Open last August, then immediately claimed the top spot at the Shinhan Donghae Open. At that time, he drew attention by setting a remarkable record of winning two consecutive tournaments for the first time in 5 years and 11 months since Park Sang-hyun (38, Dong-A Pharmaceutical) in 2014. This year, he had a somewhat sluggish performance, making only one top 10 finish in 8 tournaments. However, in this event, he scored 60 points with 30 birdies over four days and lost 2 points due to 2 bogeys.

Kim Han-byeol, who expressed “I feel sorry for winning late,” said, “I will try to achieve better results in the second half of the season,” and cheered, “I want to defend my title at the Shinhan Donghae Open.” Kim Sung-hyun (23), the winner of the Japanese major JPGA Championship, scored 17 points with 2 eagles, 5 birdies, and 3 bogeys, finishing in 2nd place (52 points). Bae Yong-jun (21, CJ OnStyle) finished 3rd (51 points), and Kim Joo-hyung (19, CJ Logistics), who leads in prize money, awards, and average score, finished 4th (49 points).