유지호
| 2023-05-05 17:30:18
S Korea-golf competition
S. Korea drops both matches on Day 1 at International Crown
By Yoo Jee-ho
SEOUL, May 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is off to a rocky start to its title defense at the International Crown, having lost both of its matches on the first day of the LPGA match play competition.
South Korea went 0-2-0 in four-ball action to start the International Crown at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco on Thursday (local time).
Choi Hye-jin and Chun In-gee lost to Minjee Lee and Stephanie Kyriacou of Australia by 2-down. And Kim Hyo-joo and Ko Jin-young fell to the other Australian team of Hannah Green and Sarah Kemp by 2 & 1.
The International Crown features eight countries, each represented by four players. South Korea grabbed No. 2 seed based on the combined world ranking positions of its four players and is in Pool B with Japan, Thailand and Australia.
The top-seeded United States is in Pool A with Sweden, England and China.
After three days of round-robin action in the four-ball format, in which each player in a team plays her own ball and the better score of the two becomes that team's score on the given hole, the top two countries from each pool will qualify for the semifinals for Sunday morning. Each match win is worth a point, and a tie is worth a half point.
The two semifinal matches will each be made up of two singles matches and one foursome match, in which each team plays one ball and players take turns hitting shots.
Both the third-place match and the final will be played Sunday afternoon, following the same format as the semifinals.
South Korea, the 2018 International Crown champion, dug itself an early hole. Choi and Chun trailed 3-down early before drawing even by winning three straight holes, starting at the 12th. But Lee and Kyriacou responded by winning the 15th and the 18th holes for the victory.
"The match is already over. Rather than feeling down, we have to accept the result," said Chun, the only South Korean player this week with prior International Crown experience. "Though we lost on the first day, we can still script a drama over the next couple of days. That's the beauty of golf."
Choi, the youngest member of the Korean team at 23, said she battled some nerves early.
"I missed some opportunities on early holes and had even better opportunities later on," Choi said. "I am most disappointed about not cashing in on those chances."
Kim and Ko found themselves trailing 3-down midway through but cut the deficit to 1-down with wins at the 10th and the 12th holes. Kemp's birdie at the 14th gave Australia a 2-up lead, and they held on for another win.
Kim revealed she had fallen ill Wednesday night and she was far from 100 percent.
"The Australian players played really well today, and it's too bad I wasn't at my best physically," Kim said. "Hopefully, we'll be able to win both matches tomorrow."
Ko gave Kim credit for keeping herself together despite being sick and said she was "angry" with herself for not being able to follow Kim's lead.
"We'll have to play with confidence and win all the matches over the remaining two days to get to the final," Ko said. "I'll try to be a little better the next couple of days."
In Pool B, both Australia and Thailand grabbed two points each on the first day, leaving South Korea and Japan without a point.
In Pool A, Sweden won both of its matches over England. The U.S. and China split their two matches.
On Day 2, it will be South Korea versus Thailand. Ko and Kim will take on Patty Tavatanakit and Atthaya Thitikul, the last two LPGA Rookie of the Year winners. Choi and Chun will face the sisters Ariya Jutanugarn and Moriya Jutanugarn. Ariya is a two-time LPGA Player of the Year with 12 LPGA titles, including two majors.
The South Korean quartet has combined for 23 LPGA wins, including six majors. Ko was the Player of the Year in 2019 and 2021, and is the top South Korean player at No. 3 in the world rankings.
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