Sangsangin·Korea Economic TV Open Round 4 7-Under Par
5th Career Win... Winner's Prize 216 Million KRW
Lim Hee-jeong 2nd, Lee So-mi 3rd, Lee Ye-won Tied 4th
Im Jin-hee's come-from-behind victory.
On the 22nd, at the Lakewood Country Club in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province (par 72, 6,606 yards), Im Jin-hee shot a 7-under-par in the final round of the KLPGA Tour SangSangin·Korea Economic TV Open (total prize money 1.2 billion KRW) to secure a one-stroke victory (13-under-par 275). This marks her third win of the season following the NH Investment & Securities Ladies Championship in May and the Jeju Samdasoo Masters in August, her fifth career win, and a winner's prize of 216 million KRW.
Im Jin-hee is smiling while holding the trophy right after winning the SangSangin·Korea Economic TV Open. [Photo by KLPGA]
Im Jin-hee became the third ‘3-win champion’ after Park Ji-young and Lee Ye-won. She rose to 3rd place in the prize money rankings (905.07 million KRW) and 2nd in the points standings for the Player of the Year (521 points). Starting from a tie for 5th place, 4 strokes behind, she collected 7 birdies without any bogeys. She started strong with a birdie on the 1st hole (par 4) and consecutive birdies on the 4th and 5th holes. After making back-to-back birdies on the 11th and 12th holes to enter the title race, she added three more birdies on the 15th and 18th holes to ultimately take the top spot on the leaderboard.
Im Jin-hee modestly said, "I did not expect to win, but luck was on my side." She added, "I made a few mistakes on my tee shots, but fortunately, I hit my second shots well, and my putting on the greens was good." She explained, "Previously, I focused on increasing my driving distance, but in preparation for this season, I concentrated on putting practice, which paid off."
Im Jin-hee is scheduled to participate in the final stage of the LPGA Tour Qualifying Series in the United States this December. She expressed her ambition, saying, "I want to challenge the U.S. stage before it gets any later," and added, "If possible, I will aim for the multiple wins title and Player of the Year this year."
Im Hee-jung, who was the leader the previous day, finished with a 2-under-par round and settled for second place (12-under-par 276). Lee So-mi took third place (11-under-par 277). Lee Ye-won, who leads both the prize money and Player of the Year standings, improved by 4 strokes to jump to a tie for 4th place (10-under-par 278). Ji Han-sol also tied for 4th, while Kim Su-ji and Park Hyun-kyung performed well, tying for 8th place (7-under-par 281). Rookie Kim Min-byeol ranked 11th (6-under-par 282), and Hwang Yu-min tied for 24th place (2-under-par 286).
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