'Major Queen' Im Ilim: "My last call before overtime was with Coach Kim Songhui"

Communicating with Coach Kim Ahead of ANA Overtime, Bond Formed After Missing Cut at June Korea Women's Open, Advice: "Let's Take It Slow"

Imirim's victory at the ANA Inspiration and her rise to 'Major Queen' was greatly aided by coach Kim Song-hee.

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] Imi-rim (30, NH Investment & Securities) was caught on TV broadcast cameras making a phone call with someone.

It was right after finishing the final 4th round of the second major of the 2020 LPGA Tour season, the ANA Inspiration (total prize money $3.1 million), held on the 14th (Korean time) at Mission Hills Golf Club in Rancho Mirage, California, USA (par 72, 6,799 yards). At the 18th hole (par 5), she made a 'chip-in eagle' to dramatically tie with Nelly Korda (USA) and Brooke Henderson (Canada), and was seeking advice over the phone in preparation for the playoff.

Imi-rim's call partner was Coach Kim Song-hee (32). She is a player who played on the LPGA Tour from 2007 to 2013 and was said to have "done everything except winning." Including the runner-up at the 2010 major LPGA Championship, she finished second five times and had as many as 36 top-10 finishes. Coach Kim, who teaches players in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, said, "I have been working with Imi-rim since June, right after the Korean Women's Open this year," and added, "As soon as I answered the phone, Imi-rim said, 'My shots suddenly aren't going well at all.'"

She explained the situation at the time, saying, "She was doing much better than her original goal," and "I told her, 'Since you did very well, don't be greedy and just do what you want in the playoff.'" Imi-rim became a 'surprise major queen' that day. Her shots were unstable enough to be cut off in both previous tournaments. Coach Kim added, "It seemed difficult to produce results immediately, so she had no greed at all," and "Two days ago, I even congratulated her on passing the qualifying round."

Coach Kim earned a master's degree in sports psychology from Yonsei University's Graduate School of Physical Education in 2017. She studies sports psychology herself and teaches juniors. "The advice I give most often to players is 'I hope you can wait,'" she confessed, "because I couldn't do that well when I was a player." Regarding Imi-rim, she said, "She was doing well but recently went through a brief slump, and my role is to prevent her from falling into a deeper pit."

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