'Major Kiss' Kim Se-young "I Held Back My Tears"

At KPMG Women's, 'Escaping Major Loss' "I'm So Excited I Feel Like Flying"

Kim Sei-young is celebrating with caddie Paul Fusco immediately after winning the final day of the KPMG Women's. Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, USA = Getty Images / Multibits

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] "I feel like I'm going to fly."

This is the feeling of Kim Se-young (27, Mirae Asset) after her first major victory. On the 12th (Korean time), immediately after winning the third major of the LPGA Tour, the KPMG Women's PGA Championship (total prize money $4.3 million) held at Aronimink Golf Club (par 70, 6,577 yards) in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, USA, she said, "I am so happy and excited because it was a victory I had long awaited," adding, "I wanted to cry, but I held back inside."

"I dreamed of winning a major after watching Se-ri Park unnie win the 1998 US Open," she revealed, "I didn't expect it to take this long." Kim Se-young especially soared on the 'tough course.' She tied the tournament's lowest round record with a 63 on the final day and set a tournament record with a total score of 266. She explained, "I felt psychological pressure since last night," and "sticking to the strategy of focusing on every shot led to this good result."

The 'Golf Empress' In-bee Park (32, KB Financial Group) fiercely chased her, but Kim was not conscious of it at all. "I never looked at the leaderboard," she recalled, "I only focused on my own play." Above all, the 2nd hole (par 4) was the most memorable. Kim Se-young said, "I faced a crisis due to a missed approach shot," and analyzed, "Making the long-distance par putt seemed to be the momentum," adding, "It was the driving force that allowed me to shoot 7 under par today."

She expressed gratitude to her caddie Paul Fusco (USA), who has been working with her for six years since she joined the LPGA Tour in 2015. "I wanted to work with Paul even before coming to the US," she said, "Thanks to Paul's help, I was able to achieve 11 wins." After receiving high praise from In-bee Park, who said she is "a player worthy of winning a major," Kim added, "I am grateful that my respected unnie complimented me," and "I look forward to competing with her for victories in many other tournaments."

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