Seohyeongseok "Title Defense Green Light"... "Did You See the 6-Under Par?"

KB Financial Liiv Championship Day 1: Moon Do-yeop Leads by 3 Shots, Joint 2nd Place, Kim Joo-hyung Tied for 6th in Chase

Seo Hyung-seok is teeing off at the 1st hole on the first day of the KB Financial Live Championship. Photo by KPGA

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] A green light has been lit for Seo Hyung-seok (24) to defend his title.

On the 27th, at Blackstone Icheon Golf Club (Par 72, 7,284 yards) in Icheon-si, Gyeonggi-do, the Korean Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA) KB Financial Live Championship (total prize money 700 million KRW) opened, and Seo surged to a 6-under-par, taking a 3-stroke lead on the first day. This tournament is especially known as the ‘promised land’ where he achieved a 3-stroke victory in 2019. Four players including Moon Do-yeop (30, DB Insurance) are tied for second place (3-under-par 69), and Kim Joo-hyung (19, CJ Logistics) is following in sixth place (2-under-par 70).

Seo Hyung-seok made headlines by passing the Korean Tour Qualifying (Q) School at just 17 years old in 2014, debuted in 2015, and had already secured two wins early on, including the DGB Daegu Gyeongbuk Open in 2017 and this tournament in 2019. Last year, he experienced a slump, missing the cut in all 11 tournaments he entered. He explained, "My mind became impatient, leading to overall difficulties with shots and putting," adding, "This year, I am not obsessing over technique but focusing on what I can do right now."

In fact, he entered ‘revival mode’ by finishing tied for 9th at the GS Caltex Maekyung Open on the 9th, and today he demonstrated near-perfect performance with one eagle and four birdies. The highlight was the eagle on the 18th hole (par 5) with a ‘2-on 1-putt’. He chose a 19-degree hybrid for the 226-yard shot and sank a 7-meter putt. Most encouraging is his green hit rate of 88.89%, showing his ‘pinpoint iron shots’ in action. Seo Hyung-seok also expressed confidence, saying, "I will continue to play well until the end."

While Moon Do-yeop is already eyeing his second win of the 2021 season, Kim Joo-hyung dreams of redemption after finishing runner-up twice recently at the DB Insurance Promy Open and the GS Caltex Maekyung Open. He said, "A few birdies missed, but 2-under-par in bad weather is a decent score," and promised to aim for the second round, adding, "If I reach 10-under-par, I think I can win." Among the leaders, Lee Tae-hee (37) is tied for 8th place (1-under-par 71), and prize money ranking leader Heo In-hoe (34) is tied for 14th place (even par 72).

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