SINGAPORE – On some days, putting practice begins at 9pm for Pak Ju-young. The South Korean golfer first has to put her son Kim Ha-yul to bed before she spends the next hour on a putting mat in her home.
Patience and determination are familiar traits for Pak. After all, it took her 279 tries and 15 years – both records on the Korean Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour – before she finally won her first professional title, having joined the circuit in 2008.
The 33-year-old had come close before with five runner-up finishes on the KLPGA Tour. Less than four months before her maiden victory, an eight-under 64 effort in the final round of the Hankyung Ladies Cup was not enough as she finished one stroke behind the winner.
After her victory at the Daebo hausD Open in October 2023, there was unsurprisingly, a sense of disbelief and relief at the Seowon Valley Country Club for Pak, whose sister is Park Hee-young, 36. The older sibling has three wins on the LPGA Tour alongside six on the KLPGA.
Pak, who is competing in this week’s Hana Financial Group Singapore Women’s Open marking her 15th season on the KLPGA, still has to pinch herself that she is a champion. She told The Straits Times: “I couldn’t believe it and I didn’t expect this to happen to me. It didn’t feel real.
“I felt like everyone else knew the right answer and I didn’t. Sport rewards those who do well, but I’d worked hard for 14 years without rewards.
“I tried to look forward to it, I tried to give up, I tried everything... I just made a promise to myself that I would do my best in practice and not get upset if it didn’t work out when it was time to compete.”
Winning takes persistence. Carolyn Hill’s breakthrough on the LPGA Tour came on her 359th start while it took 190 Formula One races before Sergio Perez claimed his maiden chequered flag.
During her drought, Pak’s commitment never faltered. She went on maternity leave in May 2022, gave birth to her son in September and was working out again 30 days later. It took a month for Pak, who had a caesarean delivery and gained 20kg during her pregnancy, to get her core muscles back.
However, she returned with an identity crisis. She said: “I’m confused every day. Am I a mum, am I a golfer, am I a wife? I have only one day off on Monday, which is also the day my nanny is off.
“When I get home, I do full-time housework, cook, care for my baby, and then go back to training on Tuesday. I don’t have the stamina, but I do it again, it’s crazy.”
She contemplated quitting golf, a thought that had crossed her mind many times. Pak said: “Honestly, I want to retire today, I want to retire yesterday, but I’m an older sister in the KLPGA.
“I want to show that I can do better, that I can start again. I’ve done enough as a golfer, but it’s a path that the younger ones have to go down as well, so I think if I hang in there and work harder, it’ll be enough to motivate them.”
Being around her peers also motivates her. Pak returned to the KLPGA in April 2023 and in September, watched compatriot Seo Yeun-jung, 28, capture her first title after 259 events via a play-off. A month later, it was Pak’s turn.
She said: “It’s really hard to maintain what you’re good at, even if you know you cannot be good at it every time.
“Because golf is a game where you have to be good with all 14 clubs, and if something doesn’t work, you have to find out what’s wrong and fix it, so it’s a challenge every single time.”
Pak had said previously that she would stop playing after her first win. Yet, here she is competing at Tanah Merah Country Club’s Tampines Course. She is at six-under 138 after rounds of 68 and 70, keeping her within reach of the leaders.
After years of waiting, Pak cannot resist competing. She wants a second trophy to go alongside the one sitting on the dresser across her son’s crib in his nursery.
