Kim Si-woo vyes for PGA Rookie of the Year

Korean golfer Kim Si-woo (CJ Korea Express) is vying for a new landmark in the history of Korean golf at this season’s Professional Golf Association (PGA) Tour; the first Korean Rookie of the Year award.

Until now, Korea has introduced numerous rookies in the U.S. Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour, and both men’s and women’s at Japan Golf Tour and European Golf Tour. However, no Korean male golfer has been awarded at the PGA Tours.

Kim’s challenge for his rookie award will come to a conclusion at the Tour Championship held as the final PGA Tour Playoff at Eastlake Golf Club, Atlanta, U.S. on Thursday. Kim has been chosen as the only Korean among the 30 world’s best field stars who contend for the current Tour. Among the players, nominees eligible to be classified as a U.S. PGA Tour rookie include Kim and Emiliano Grillo of Argentina. In terms of money list, Kim is ranked at 28th with around 2.86 million dollars, and Grillo at 23rd with 3.15 million dollars. Kim is currently keeping his momentum as he finished his recent 2nd and 3rd playoffs within the Top-20. Kim confirmed his eligibility for the award by beating the second candidate Grillo and placing himself as the No. 1 on the 2015-2016 Rookie Rankings announced by the PGA Tour on Tuesday.

“I am grateful for just making it to the ranks which I never expected," Kim said at a telephone interview on Wednesday. "Now the award is visible, I am strongly motivated to make this happen. It’d be a life-time opportunity. Nevertheless, I will do my best not to be greedy and ruin the game.” Unlike the LPGA tour that awards new rookies based on season points, the Rookie of the Year is voted by PGA Tour members. This is one of the reasons that Kim must leave a strong impression and successfully his Tour Championship.

Furthermore, many are interested in whether Kim will become the best rookie with Chun In-gee who confirmed her title as the LPGA Rookie of the Year.

In his upcoming “Star Wars,” Kim expressed his excitement, saying, “I am thrilled to be on the stage of my dreams. Personally, I would like to gain a lot from this tour. As there are no cuts, I hope to learn more from many global players.” On questions related to the tour course, Kim gave his opinion that “playing on the course will be quite tricky, as it is very long in length with steep roughs. Moreover, if I putt well on the difficult greens, I might be able to produce a good result. My strategy is to score birdies on the two par 5 holes.”

The final winner of the Tour Championship receives 1.53 million dollars. Furthermore, the player who wins the FedEx Cup will receive an additional 10 million dollars as a bonus.

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