Yoo Hae-ran's 2nd Win Cheers "Wire to Wire~"... Song Ga-eun 'Rookie of the Year'

SK Shieldus Wins by 3 Strokes at SK Telecom Championship, Park Jooyoung 2nd, Lee Gayoung 3rd, Jang Hana and Park Hyunkyung Tied 4th

Yoo Hae-ran is posing with a money box containing 200 million won immediately after winning the SK Shielders·SK Telecom Championship. Photo by KLPGA

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] Yoo Hae-ran (20, SK Networks) delivers a spectacular finale.

On the 14th, at the Ravie Belle Golf Club (par 72, 6,815 yards) in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, the final round of the 2021 KLPGA Tour season finale, the SK Shielders·SK Telecom Championship (total prize money 1 billion KRW) concluded with Yoo adding a 3-under-par round to secure a 3-stroke victory (11-under-par 205). She maintained the lead wire-to-wire for three consecutive days. This is her second win of the season and fourth career victory, two months after the Elcrew-TV Chosun Pro Celebrity in September, with a winner's prize of 200 million KRW.

Starting with a 3-stroke lead, Yoo recorded five birdies and two bogeys. After a birdie on the 1st hole (par 5), she briefly faltered with consecutive bogeys on the 6th and 7th holes but regained momentum with birdies on the 8th and 11th holes to stay atop the leaderboard. She extended her lead to three strokes with back-to-back birdies on the 15th and 16th holes. Yoo said, "Saving par on the 14th hole (par 4) was important," and added, "I finished the season finale with a good feeling and will aim for at least one win next year," expressing her excitement.

Park Joo-young (31, Dongbu Construction) was tied for the lead after reducing four strokes over 13 holes but was held back by consecutive bogeys on the 14th and 15th holes. This marks her second runner-up finish of the season (8-under-par 208), following the Doosan Match Play Championship in May. Lee Ga-young (22, NH Investment & Securities) finished third (5-under-par 211), while Park Hyun-kyung (21, Korea Land Trust) and Jang Ha-na (29, BC Card), among others, tied for fourth place (4-under-par 212). Two-time winner Jang Ha-na took home the lowest scoring average award.

Song Ga-eun is making an iron shot on the 1st hole during the final day of the SK Shielders·SK Telecom Championship. Photo by KLPGA

Rookie Song Ga-eun (21, MG Saemaeul Geumgo) finished the season tied for 14th place (1-under-par 215). She fended off a persistent challenge from second-ranked rookie points leader Hong Jeong-min (19, CJ OnStyle) to win the Rookie of the Year award. Last month, she was the only rookie to win at the Hana Financial Group Championship. "I was nervous because I had to play well until the last day to win Rookie of the Year, but now that it's over, I feel great," she said. "I will continue to work hard next year without losing my initial determination."

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