‘Tank’ Choi becomes first South Korean to win a senior major

South Korean golfer Choi Kyung-ju “Tank” Choi, 54, has made history.

Choi shot a 2-under-par 70 in the final round of The Senior Open ($2.85 million purse) at Carnoustie Golf Links (par-72) in Carnoustie, Scotland, United Kingdom, on Monday (Sept. 29) for a 10-under-par 278 total.

The Senior Open is a major on the Champions and Legends Tours of the United States Professional Golf (PGA) Tour, the senior tours of the United States and Europe.

Choi became the first South Korean player to win a major on both the U.S. and European senior tours.

Choi made history by becoming the first Korean to win a PGA Tour event, the most wins (8), and the first Korean to win a PGA Tour Champions event.

In particular, Choi, who had won the Players Championship, the PGA Tour’s “fifth major,” and finished third at the Masters but never won a major, finally realized his dream of becoming a major champion at the senior level.

Choi has played in The Open at Carnoustie Golf Links twice before, in 1999 and 2007, finishing tied for eighth in 2007.

He is only the second Asian player to win The Senior Open, following Noboru Sugai (JPN) in 2002.

Choi, who started playing in the senior ranks in 2020, won the Pure Insurance Open in 2021. With this victory, Choi has now won two titles in three years at the senior level.

After proving her competitiveness on May 19, her 54th birthday, with a dramatic come-from-behind victory at the Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA) Tour’s SK Telecom Open to become the oldest player on the KPGA Tour to win a major, Choi’s victory at the senior level ushered in her second prime.

Choi earned $447,800 (approximately $620 million) in prize money, a spot in next year’s The Open, and a solid foothold on both the U.S. and European senior tours for the foreseeable future.

Choi moved up to fifth in the PGA Tour Champions Schwab Cup standings.

“It’s historic for a Korean player to win this tournament,” said Choi, who added, ”I’m proud. My dream has come true.”

Choi, who entered the final round with a one-stroke lead, had a shaky start.

She bogeyed the first hole (par-4) and dropped another shot on the fifth (par-4) and sixth (par-6). On the sixth hole, she left her ball in the penalty area.

His shot went in the wrong direction and he didn’t have the speed on the green. The greens were unusually slow at Carnoustie Golf Links on this day.

Richard Green (AUS), who started the day in second place, rattled off a string of pars to take the lead, while Choi slipped to second place by two shots.

Paul Broadhurst (GBR), playing in the front group, birdied the fourth and fifth holes to overtake Choi for second place.

Choi, who was three shots back of Jolji, refused to back down.

She had a 3-meter birdie opportunity on the ninth (par-4) to turn the tide with her first birdie of the day.

A 5-meter birdie putt on the 10th (par-4) put Choi back in the lead.

With her confidence restored, Choi used a stunning short game to tap-in for birdie at the 12th (par-5) and followed it up with back-to-back birdies at the 13th (par-3) by placing her tee shot 1 meter to the side of the hole.

After missing a short par putt on the 13th (par-3), Choi quickly took a three-stroke lead and then sank a 10-meter eagle putt on the 14th (par-5) to seal the deal.

From here, Choi hit her second shot to the green with 235 yards to go, a clean iron shot that cleared the 195-yard front bunker.

Choi pumped her right fist in the air as the eagle putt rolled in.
His incredible spurt of six strokes in six holes from the ninth through the 14th left his competitors in the dust.

Green held on with a birdie on the 14th, but dropped a shot on the 15th (par-4) to fall five strokes behind, and a birdie on the 16th (par-3) and a birdie on the final 18th (par-4) were not enough to catch up.

Broadhurst could not cut any more strokes and were no longer a threat to Choi.After settling into a groove from the 15th hole onward, Choi had a nerve-wracking moment on the final 18th hole (par-4) when her tee shot stopped just short of the creek that crossed the fairway.Choi safely got her ball to the green in three, then two-putted for a one-stroke deficit and a two-stroke victory.

Choi sank her 5-meter par putt into the hole and celebrated with her arms in the air.Choi hugged her wife, Kim Hyun-jung, who was waiting by the green, and shared her emotions.

“Today was unbelievable,” Choi said, ”I was very nervous. The greens were slower than the day before, so my putt speed dropped and I made three bogeys. But I stayed focused and prayed, and my swing became more relaxed,” Choi reflected on the day.“I didn’t get off to a great start today, but I played well on the seventh and eighth and birdied the ninth to feel good. Back-to-back birdies on the ninth and 10th gave me the momentum and the eagle on the 14th was the clincher.”Green, a three-time winner on the European Senior Tour, had to settle for runner-up honors (8-under 280) after carding four birdies and three bogeys to drop one stroke.Broadhurst, who carded three birdies and a bogey to cut two strokes, finished third (6-under 282).Yong Eun Yang shot a 2-under 70 and is tied for 22nd (4-over par 292).Yang had one eagle and three birdies, but a triple bogey on the par-5 sixth hole was a disappointment. 카지노사이트

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