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"My ultimate dream is to become world No. 1."

This is the bold ambition of ‘box office card’ Lee Ye-won. In an interview with Asia Economy on the 21st, when asked about her ultimate goal as a golf player, Lee Ye-won confidently said, "To become world No. 1," adding, "I will definitely achieve it someday." She continued, "If given the opportunity, I also want to play on the U.S. Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour," smiling as she said, "If possible, I hope to participate as an invited player rather than through the Qualifying (Q) Series to seize the chance to advance overseas."

Lee Ye-won, who has emerged as a popular figure in domestic women's golf, expressed her bold ambition, saying, "I will become world No. 1 someday."

Lee Ye-won is the next-generation star who will lead the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour. She fell in love with golf when she saw the ball being sucked into the hole in the first grade of elementary school. She showed outstanding skills since her amateur days. In her third year of middle school, she passed the national team selection. She swept titles such as the KB Financial Group Amateur Championship, Taiwan Ladies Amateur, Australia Queen Sirikit Cup, and Naver’s Cup.

Lee Ye-won joined the KLPGA in 2021, winning twice on the Jump (3rd tier) Tour and once on the Dream (2nd tier) Tour. She secured her tour card by ranking 5th in the Dream Tour money rankings (73.23 million KRW), and last year, with three runner-up finishes and 13 top-10 entries, she won the Rookie of the Year award (3,001 points). She was the first in KLPGA history to surpass 3,000 rookie points. Last year, she ranked 3rd in prize money (849.78 million KRW), 4th in grand prize points (530 points), and 8th in average score (71.05 strokes).

Lee Ye-won succeeded on her 33rd attempt in 32 tournaments at the KLPGA Tour’s domestic season opener, the Lotte Rent-a-Car Women’s Open, which ended on the 9th. Reflecting on the moment, she said, "I wanted to win, but I didn’t expect to do it at the season opener," adding, "Since it was the first tournament, I told myself to play without pressure, and I ended up winning." When asked about not shedding tears immediately after winning, she replied, "I was touched right after the win, but the tears disappeared during the victory interview."

Last winter, Lee Ye-won worked hard for 56 days in Perth, Australia. She woke up at 5:30 a.m., played 18 holes, took a short break, then started practicing shots and short games from 1 p.m. until 6 p.m. She continued her golf efforts even after dinner. She said, "Last year, I rested during free time after dinner, but this year I did weight training, putting practice, and empty swings." Lee Ye-won puts her phone in her bag during training. She explained, "If I keep my phone in my back pocket, I can’t concentrate," adding, "To maximize training effectiveness, I put my phone away when practicing."

Lee Ye-won is a long hitter who drives an average of 246 yards with a driver despite her small stature.

Lee Ye-won is 163 cm tall. She has a small build but is a ‘long hitter’ averaging 246.11 yards (30th place). She explained, "I think the driver is the most important in golf," adding, "You need to hit tee shots accurately to manage your score." Lee Ye-won focuses on training to hit the ball in the center of the clubface. She also practices empty swings diligently, swinging hundreds every day. She emphasized, "If you only hit the sweet spot, you can have both distance and direction," and "Doing many empty swings helps develop a consistent rhythm and tempo." Lee Ye-won has strong arm strength and grip power, and her ability to exert instantaneous force is excellent.

Lee Ye-won has an interesting routine. Since elementary school, she has drawn smiley faces on her scorecard before matches. She continues this even as a professional. When she has time, she relieves stress by watching movies. Recently, she watched the Japanese animation ‘Suzume no Tojimari.’ She shared, "I watch movies by actors or directors I like," and revealed, "Among domestic actors, I like Park Seo-joon, who gave a great performance in the drama ‘Itaewon Class.’" Lee Ye-won plans to watch ‘Dream,’ starring Park Seo-joon and IU, when it is released.

Lee Ye-won’s role model is the ‘Golf Empress’ Park In-bi. She expressed respect, saying, "Senior Park In-bi is so good at short games that I want to emulate her," and "She also seems to have a really strong mental game." Lee Ye-won smiled brightly, saying, "When I was young, it was cool to see Senior Park In-bi wearing the KB Financial Group cap," adding, "Since my amateur days, I wanted to join KB Financial Group, and now that I have a sponsorship contract, that dream has come true."

Before this year’s season opener, Lee Ye-won set a goal of multiple wins: one in the first half and one in the second half. She confidently said, "There is still a lot of time left in the first half," and "I will revise my goal to two wins in the first half." After her first victory, her mindset changed. She said, "I was able to let go of the pressure and focus on my play," and "I also gained confidence that I can do well." She expressed her determination, saying, "I want to be a player who performs consistently," and "This year, I will aim for the grand prize, which can only be won by achieving good results in all tournaments."

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