"I haven't been able to play well for a long time, so why do you all support me so much?" World No. 1 Park Sung-hyun reflects and vows a comeback at the season finale [KLPGA]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

She has secured seven victories on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour and 10 on the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour, and once held the world No. 1 ranking for 20 consecutive weeks. For this reason, many view her current slump with regret. Park Sung-hyun herself (33, Devis Ta CC), however, is drawing strength from her gratitude toward fans who continue to show her boundless affection despite her struggles.

Park Sung-hyun finished tied for 14th place with a score of 278 (10 under par) at the Aramco Korea Championship, which concluded on the 11th at New Korea Country Club (par 72) in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.

While the result may not seem special given her past prestige, it is a meaningful record considering she had been mired in a deep slump.

Park Sung-hyun, who rose to prominence after debuting on the LPGA Tour in 2017 by simultaneously winning the Rookie of the Year, Player of the Year, and Money List titles while also reaching world No. 1, has achieved seven career LPGA wins, including two major championships.

Injuries were the problem. Subsequent injuries to her wrist and shoulder joints led to a prolonged slump. Her swing, based on explosive distance and fast head speed, thrilled fans, but the mechanics made it difficult to avoid injury. She struggled to find balance, her performance stalled, and her world ranking followed a sharp downward curve. Ultimately, she even lost her LPGA Tour status.

However, Park Sung-hyun gritted her teeth for a glorious comeback and was able to confirm some potential through the last two tournaments.

She placed tied for 13th with 5 under par at The Sieuna Open, the first tournament of this season, but missed the cut at the Mediheal-Kyunghyang Ilbo Championship in August, finished tied for 33rd at the BC Card-The Korea Economic Daily (Hankyung) KLPGA Championship, and also finished tied for 27th with 9 over par at the Hite Jinro Championship held earlier this month. On the LPGA Tour, she missed the cut twice and failed to finish within the top 30 in her other two appearances.

In contrast, she did not record an over-par score for all four days of this tournament, earning her most impressive result card among the tournaments she has entered this season.

She herself feels satisfied. After the tournament, Park Sung-hyun met with reporters and said, "Last week my score wasn't great, but I thought I played well. The course was very difficult, and many good shots and putts came out. If it's not a win, of course it's disappointing, but I think I finished well, around 70 points." She added, "This week the course was much easier, so I hit well, but it doesn't seem to make much difference. I would probably give myself about 75 points. Still, I am gaining a lot of confidence in the fact that things are continuously improving," evaluating her performance positively.

At this tournament as well, Park Sung-hyun was accompanied by a cloud of spectators, just like Kim Hyo-ju. The fan club "Nam Dala," which always sends enthusiastic cheers regardless of results, is a great source of motivation for her.

Park Sung-hyun said, "I am always grateful. I sometimes ask myself, 'Why do you all support me so much?' I think I should show more through my scores, but even though I haven't had notable results for such a long time, I feel immense gratitude that so many people have consistently supported me while I play." She continued, "I felt it especially strongly this time. You look at me like a daughter and support me in that way; I really want to repay you with a win. I am working hard, and next week I want to show you an even better result than this week."

Park Sung-hyun will compete in the KLPGA Tour Iceberg Golf Seoul Shinmun Open, which opens on the 16th at H1 Club in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. It could be the last tournament of her season. "As it stands, it is my final schedule," Park Sung-hyun stated, vowing to perform well by saying, "I will try to show better performance."

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original