'Egg Golfer' Kim Haerim Wins in Overtime "After 3 Years and 2 Months"... Iga Young Takes 2nd Place

MacCol and Mona Park Open Final Day 5-Under Par, Victory Birdie on First Playoff Hole, Yu Hae-ran 3rd Place

Kim Hae-rim is cheering with the trophy placed in front of her right after winning the Maekcol·Monapark Open. Photo by KLPGA

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] It is the comeback shot of "Egg Golfer" Kim Hae-rim (32, Samchully).

On the final day of the McCol & Monapark Open (total prize money 800 million KRW) of the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour held on the 4th at Birch Hill Golf Club (par 72, 6,434 yards) in Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon-do, she added 5 under par to tie for first place with Lee Ga-young (22, NH Investment & Securities) at 13 under par 203. Then, on the first hole of the sudden-death playoff resumed at the 18th hole (par 5), she sank a 1-meter birdie putt to seal the victory. This marked her 7th career win, her first in 3 years and 2 months since the Kyochon Honey Ladies Open in May 2018, earning a winner’s prize of 144 million KRW.

Kim Hae-rim is well known for her unique story related to eggs. She ate 30 eggs daily to increase her driving distance and set a remarkable record of winning the Kyochon Honey Ladies Open, sponsored by one of Korea’s leading chicken companies, three consecutive times from 2016 to 2018. In KLPGA history, winning the same tournament three times in a row is the first since Kang Soo-yeon (45) achieved it at the Hite Jinro Championship from 2000 to 2002, a 16-year gap. In 2017, she notably swept three wins including the major KB Financial Star Championship.

It is worth noting that in July of the same year, she was invited to the Samantha Thavasa Ladies Tournament on the Japan Ladies Professional Golf Association (JLPGA) Tour and won. However, Kim Hae-rim moved to Japan the following year to compete in both the Korean and Japanese tours but struggled with conditioning. This year, she also missed the cut four times and withdrew once, losing her presence. Fortunately, in this tournament, she regained her prime form, including a perfect 7-under-par round on the first day.

It is interesting that Kim Hae-rim played the first day pushing her electric cart herself without a caddie. For the 2nd and 3rd rounds, she hired a house caddie considering the rainy weather. She explained, "I wanted to understand the role of a caddie to some extent." She added, "This victory has given me confidence," and expressed her hunter instinct by saying, "I will challenge for 10 wins on the tour." Lee Ga-young shot 8 under par but finished in second place. Yoo Hae-ran (20, SK Networks) took third place at 10 under par 206.

Lee Gayoung is hitting an iron tee shot on the 2nd hole on the final day of the Maekcol·Monapark Open. Photo by KLPGA

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