Choi Garam: "I'm a Strong Contender in the Seed Round"..."Expecting a Big Win Next Year"

10 Consecutive Years on the 1st Division Tour 'K-10 Club' Member, Passed All 4 Qualifiers "Challenge, First Victory and Most Appearances"

'K-10 Club' Choi Garam is a 'strong-hearted' player who has passed all four qualifying tournaments since joining the KLPGA Tour.

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] "I get nervous too, but I hide it well without showing it."

Choi Garam (29, ShinHyup) is a ‘strong player in the seed ranking tournament.’ She is a player who smoothly passes the ‘race from hell,’ the seed tournament. Since joining the regular tour, she has survived all four seed tournaments. Choi Garam, who said, "Every player participating in the seed tournament feels anxious as if their life will end if they fail to secure a seed," explained, "That feeling usually prevents me from performing well, but I tried to stay calm and play as usual, which helped me achieve good results."

Choi Garam is a 10-year veteran who joined the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour in 2012. She has played in the first division tour for 10 consecutive years, joining the ‘K-10 Club.’ It is a rare record held by only 14 players. "I can’t believe it’s already been 10 years," she said, "I will work harder and show better performances in the future." Although she has been on the tour for 10 years, it is regrettable that she has not yet won a tournament. Her best result was runner-up at the 2018 Brunei Ladies Open.

This year, she ranked 91st in prize money (44,298,000 KRW), missing the seed, but she revived by ranking 29th in last month’s seed ranking tournament. She has a quiet and calm personality, which is her strength in the nerve-wracking seed tournaments. "I prefer being moderate and quiet rather than flashy," she smiled, "and that helps in golf too." Her mindset preparing for next season has also changed. The victory of her same-age friend Kwak Bomi (High1 Resort), who won after 11 years, was a stimulus.

"Seeing a player in a similar situation win gave me confidence that I can do it too," she said, "It became an opportunity to have a positive mindset and work hard." Her fairway hit rate is 33rd (77.16%), and average putting is 32nd (30.50 strokes). Her driving distance is 104th (224.65 yards), which is a weak point. Considering the trend of longer course lengths, she is focusing on increasing her driving distance. "I have been correcting my swing to a torso swing for two years," she said, "I hope it stabilizes soon."

This winter, she plans to focus on physical training. "I am trying many new things," said Choi Garam, "If my distance improves a bit more, I think I can achieve good results," expressing confidence that "next year will be different from before." Up to this year, she has participated in 231 tournaments and played 646 rounds. Her goal is to stay on the tour until age 35. "I will challenge the record for most appearances (356 tournaments) held by senior Hong Ran (35, Samchully)," she said.

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