Kim Min-gyu's Teenage Storm "I am 19 years old"... What about '18-year-old' Kim Joo-hyung?

2020 Season Round 3 KPGA Open Day 1: Lee Chang-woo Leads with 22 Points, 2nd Place at 19 Points, Park Sang-hyun 3rd with 16 Points, Kim Joo-hyung 84th with 4 Points

Kim Min-gyu (left) and Kim Ju-hyeong are walking and talking at the 2nd hole on the first day of the KPGA Open. Photo by KPGA

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] It is the 'teenage whirlwind' of Kim Min-gyu (19, CJ Logistics).

On the 16th, at Solago Golf Course in Taean, Chungnam (Par 72, 7,263 yards), the first day of the 3rd round of the 2020 KPGA Korean Tour KPGA Open (total prize money 500 million KRW), he scored 19 points to rise to 2nd place. Lee Chang-woo (27, Srixon) leads with 22 points, Park Sang-hyun (37, Dong-A Pharmaceutical), Park Sung-guk (32), and Lee Jun-seok (Australia) are tied for 3rd with 16 points, and Moon Do-yeop (29, DB Insurance) and Choi Min-cheol (32, Woosung Construction) are tied for 6th with 14 points. The format is not stroke play but a 'modified Stableford' system.

Points are awarded as follows: Albatross 8 points, Eagle 5 points, Birdie 2 points, Par 0 points, Bogey -1 point, Double bogey or worse -3 points. Kim Min-gyu boasted flawless play with 1 eagle and 7 birdies through 15 holes. However, in the remaining 3 holes, he recorded 1 birdie and 2 bogeys. He is 3 points behind the leader, laying a solid foundation for his first-ever Korean Tour victory. Kim Min-gyu is the protagonist who earned the youngest Taegeuk mark at age 14 while in the 2nd year of Sinseong Middle School.

In 2017, at age 16, he gained attention by winning twice on the European EuroPro (3rd tier) Tour. Ranked 2nd in prize money, he advanced to the European Challenge (2nd tier) Tour and in 2018, won the Czech Challenge at 17 years and 64 days old, becoming the youngest winner in Challenge Tour history. Last week, he qualified to participate in the KPGA Gunsan CC Open, but this tournament he entered as the runner-up from the previous event. He cheered, "I carried a good momentum with four consecutive birdies in the first four holes."

Lee Chang-woo is smiling brightly before his tee shot on the first hole on the first day of the KPGA Open. Photo by KPGA

Kim Min-gyu, who said, "I want to play on the European 1st tier tour soon," explained, "I still have a conditional card for the 1st tier tour. Although it is a bit later than planned, I am thinking positively because I am young." Lee Chang-woo dominated the top of the leaderboard with 11 birdies. He is a player who won the Korean Tour Dongbu Insurance Promy Open as an amateur in 2013. Afterwards, he fell into a severe slump and experienced hardships on the 2nd tier tour.

This year, he is on the rise with a tie for 5th at the opening Woosung Construction Aramir CC Busan Gyeongnam Open and 4th at the KPGA Gunsan CC Open. Park Sang-hyun started smoothly, chasing the leader by 6 points. Choi Jin-ho (36, Hyundai Steel) is tied for 12th with 12 points, and Moon Kyung-jun (38, Husem) is tied for 15th with 11 points. Kim Joo-hyung (CJ Logistics), the youngest winner (18 years and 21 days) of the KPGA Gunsan CC Open, finished tied for 84th with 4 points. Lee Ji-hoon (34), the 'Busan Gyeongnam Open champ,' is tied for 138th with -1 point.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.