S. Korea reigns supreme in LPGA season cut short by pandemic

▲ In this Getty Images photo, Ko Jin-young of South Korea kisses the trophy after winning the CME Group Tour Championship at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, on Dec. 20, 2020. (Yonhap)

▲ In this Getty Images photo, Ko Jin-young of South Korea hits a shot on the 17th hole during the final round of the CME Group Tour Championship at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, on Dec. 20, 2020. (Yonhap)

▲ In this Getty Images photo, Kim Sei-young of South Korea hits her tee shot on the third hole during the final round of the CME Group Tour Championship at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, on Dec. 20, 2020. (Yonhap)

▲ In this Getty Images file photo from Oct. 11, 2020, Kim Sei-young of South Korea hoists the championship trophy after winning the KPMG Women's PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. (Yonhap)

▲ In this Associated Press file photo from Dec. 14, 2020, Kim A-lim of South Korea hoists the championship trophy after winning the U.S. Women's Open at Champions Golf Club in Houston. (Yonhap)

▲ In this Getty Images file photo from Sept. 13, 2020, Lee Mi-rim of South Korea (rear) and her caddie, Matt Glczis, celebrate Lee's victory at the ANA Inspiration inside Poppie's Pond, as per tradition for the tournament's champions, at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California, on Sept. 13, 2020. (Yonhap)

LPGA-season wrap

S. Korea reigns supreme in LPGA season cut short by pandemic

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, Dec. 21 (Yonhap) -- There were numerous changes to the 2020 LPGA season, brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, but there was one constant.

South Korean players were the dominant force once again.

The schedule was shortened from 33 tournaments to 18 due to effects of COVID-19, while a couple of new events were added. One of the five major tournaments, the Evian Championship held in France, was canceled.

Of the four remaining majors, South Korean players won three of them, and all three winners, Lee Mi-rim, Kim Sei-young and Kim A-lam, were first-time major champions.

All told, South Koreans combined to win seven of the 18 tournaments, one more than American players. South Korea has topped the LPGA in victories in every season since 2015.

World No. 1 Ko Jin-young put a nice finishing touch on 2020 by taking the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, Florida, on Sunday (local time), by five strokes over Kim Sei-young. Ko also won her second straight money title, despite playing in just four tournaments. In those four appearances, Ko had three top-five finishes.

Park Hee-young got the ball rolling for the Korean contingent on Feb. 9, when she won the third tournament of the year, ISPS Handa Vic Open, in Australia. The tour stayed Down Under for another week, and Park In-bee won the next event, ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open.

The tour came to a halt the following week due to the COVID-19 outbreak, just before the start of the early-season Asian swing. The play only resumed at the end of July.

The ANA Inspiration, usually the season's first major played in April, was postponed to September, and Lee Mi-rim beat Brooke Henderson and Nelly Korda on the first playoff hole for her maiden major trophy.

In October, it was Kim Sei-young's turn to shine, as she won the KPMG Women's PGA Championship by five strokes over Park In-bee. The future Hall of Famer finally had her major breakthrough in her 29th appearance.

Lee and Kim already had won on the tour before and had been LPGA members for a few years. Kim A-lim, a Korean tour member, came out of nowhere to capture the season's final major, U.S. Women's Open, in December.

Kim overcame a five-stroke final round deficit for her stunning victory, which will allow her to join the LPGA Tour full-time next season.

Ko's victory at the CME Group Tour Championship gave South Korea three winners in the season's final four tournaments.

South Korean stars also took home major individual trophies.

Kim Sei-young, behind her major victory and two other wins, earned her first career Player of the Year award. She finished with 118 points, six ahead of the 2013 Player of the Year Park In-bee.

Kim became the second straight Korean, after Ko, to claim the top player honor.

Ko clinched the money title with a little over US$1.66 million, thanks to her $1.1 million jackpot that came with winning the CME Group Tour Championship.

Ko, Kim and Park entered the season's final tournament ranked 1-2-3 in the world, and they look poised to begin the new season next month in the same position.

Last Friday, the LPGA announced a 34-tournament schedule for 2021, with a record $76.45 million in official purses up for grabs.

It isn't yet clear how many of those tournaments could be played, as the pandemic rages on. The only bit of certainty may be that South Korean players will be out there looking to dominate again.

(END)

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