Mi-Hyun Kim (Korean: 김미현, born 13 January 1977) is a professional golfer from South Korea. She turned professional in 1996 and won 11 events on the LPGA of Korea Tour (KLPGA) between 1996 and 2000. In 1999, she joined the LPGA Tour and was named was Rookie of the Year that year. She has won eight LPGA events with her best finish in a major championship second place at the 2001 Women's British Open.
| Mi-Hyun Kim 김미현 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Kim at the 2009 LPGA Championship | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Nickname | Peanut, Kimmie | ||
| Born | 13 January 1977 Incheon, South Korea | ||
| Height | 5 ft 1 in (155 cm) | ||
| Sporting nationality |  South Korea | ||
| Residence | Orlando, Florida, U.S. | ||
| Spouse | Won Hee Lee (m. 2008-2012) | ||
| Career | |||
| College | Sungkyunkwan University | ||
| Turned professional | 1996 | ||
| Current tour(s) | LPGA Tour (joined 1999) KLPGA (joined 1996) | ||
| Professional wins | 21 | ||
| Number of wins by tour | |||
| LPGA Tour | 8 | ||
| LPGA of Korea Tour | 13 | ||
| Best results in LPGA major championships | |||
| Chevron Championship | T5: 2005 | ||
| Women's PGA C'ship | T3: 2006 | ||
| U.S. Women's Open | T4: 2000 | ||
| du Maurier Classic | T6: 1999 | ||
| Women's British Open | 2nd: 2001 | ||
| Achievements and awards | |||
| |||
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 김미현 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | 金美賢 |
| Revised Romanization | Gim Mi-hyeon |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kim Mi-hyŏn |
Background
editBorn in Incheon, Kim received the nicknamed "Peanut" because she stands only 5 feet 1 inch (155 cm) tall. LPGA golfers also refer to her as "Kimmy." She was inspired to move to the United States by Se Ri Pak, and they along with Grace Park and Hee-Won Han – the four nicknamed the "Seoul Sisters"[1] – are considered pioneers in the surge of outstanding South Korean women's golfers on the LPGA Tour.[2] Her swing is characterized by an unusually long backswing that has become shorter in recent years.
Charitable giving
editIn May 2007, Kim donated $100,000 of her $210,000 prize money from winning the SemGroup Championship to victims of a recent tornado that severely damaged the town of Greensburg, Kansas. The tornado occurred during the SemGroup tournament.
Kim did not have any connection to Greensburg or any of its residents. Commenting on her donation, she said, "Honestly, I made a lot of money in the United States on the LPGA Tour. Most of time, I get the money here and donate to South Korea. But, I want to help people here, too. The win was a surprise for me and I think God gave it to me like a special present or he is using me like, 'okay, I give you this, but after that you give to help the people.'"[3]
A year later on the eve on the 2008 SemGroup Championship, the president of the United Way of the Plains in Wichita, Kansas appeared with Kim at the pre-tournament press conference to publicly thank her and announce that the publicity surrounding Kim's donation had spurred further donations totaling $1.2 million and that money is being used to build 25 homes for low- and moderate-income individuals displaced by the tornado.[4][5]
Personal
editKim retired from the LPGA Tour after playing several tournaments during the 2011 season.[2] In December 2008 she married Lee Won-hee, a former Olympic gold medalist in judo who now teaches judo at a university in South Korea.[6][7] In 2009 they had a son, Ye Sung Lee, who was born in Orlando, Florida.[6] The couple divorced in 2012.[8]
She currently teaches golf in South Korea. A golf teaching/practice facility built by her father is named the Mi-Hyun Kim Golf World.[1]
Professional wins (19)
editLPGA Tour (8)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 Sep 1999 | State Farm Rail Classic | -12 (66-68-70=204) | 1 stroke | Janice Moodie Pearl Sinn |
| 2 | 10 Oct 1999 | First Union Betsy King Classic | -8 (68-72-70-70=280) | 1 stroke | Beth Daniel Helen Dobson Jenny Lidback |
| 3 | 24 Sep 2000 | Safeway LPGA Golf Championship | -1 (70-73-72=215) | Playoff | Jeong Jang |
| 4 | 21 Jul 2002 | Giant Eagle LPGA Classic | -14 (65-68-69=202) | 1 stroke | Kelly Robbins |
| 5 | 4 Aug 2002 | Wendy's Championship for Children | -8 (68-67-73=208) | 1 stroke | Hee-Won Han |
| 6 | 30 Apr 2006 | Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open | -12 (70-66-69-71=276) | 2 strokes | Lorena Ochoa Karrie Webb |
| 7 | 16 Jul 2006 | Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic | -18 (68-66-67-65=266) | Playoff | Natalie Gulbis |
| 8 | 6 May 2007 | SemGroup Championship | -3 (71-68-71=210) | Playoff | Juli Inkster |
LPGA Tour playoff record (3–3)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2000 | Safeway LPGA Golf Championship | Jeong Jang | Won with par on second extra hole |
| 2 | 2000 | New Albany Golf Classic | Lorie Kane | Lost to birdie on first extra hole |
| 3 | 2001 | The Office Depot | Annika Sörenstam | Lost to par on first extra hole |
| 4 | 2001 | Kathy Ireland Championship | Rosie Jones | Lost to birdie on first extra hole |
| 5 | 2006 | Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic | Natalie Gulbis | Won with birdie on third extra hole |
| 6 | 2007 | SemGroup Championship | Juli Inkster | Won with par on first extra hole |
LPGA of Korea Tour wins (13)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 30 Apr 1994 | Tomboy Women's Open (as an amateur) | 72-74-72=218 | +2 | 2 strokes | Kang Soo-yun (amateur) |
| 2 | 15 Jul 1995 | Fursys Cup Korea Women's Open (as an amateur) | 71-71-68=210 | −6 | 2 strokes | Se Ri Pak (amateur) |
| 3 | 29 Jun 1996 | Midopa Women's Open | 69-69=138 | -6 | 2 strokes | Song Chae-eun Ha Nan-kyung |
| 4 | 18 Aug 1996 | Korea Oil Corporation Invitational | 67-74-65=206 | −10 | 2 strokes | Se Ri Pak |
| 5 | 25 Oct 1996 | LG Fashion Cup Korea Women's Open | 70-74-72=216 | E | 2 strokes | Se Ri Pak |
| 6 | 31 Aug 1997 | Korea Oil Corporation Invitational | 71-74-68=213 | −3 | 1 stroke | Il Mi Chung |
| 7 | 7 Sep 1997 | FILA Women's Open | 73-68-70=211 | −10 | 1 stroke | Gloria Park (amateur) |
| 8 | 13 Sep 1997 | Lacoste SBS Champions | 73-75-74=222 | +6 | 3 strokes | Han Ji-yeon Seo A-ram |
| 9 | 9 May 1998 | Carnation Women's Open | 70-73-67=210 | −6 | 7 strokes | Jeong Jang (amateur) |
| 10 | 11 Sep 1998 | SBS Champions | 72-74-74=220 | +4 | Playoff | Il Mi Chung |
| 11 | 1 Nov 1998 | KLPGA Championship | 72-76-71=219 | +3 | 2 strokes | Seo Ji-hyun |
| 12 | 29 Oct 2000 | Sports Seoul Hyundai Securities Women's Open | 71-68-68=207 | −9 | 4 strokes | Laura Davies |
| 13 | 3 Dec 2000 | Paradise Women's Open | 71-73-63=207 | −9 | 10 strokes | Il Mi Chung |
Tournaments in bold denotes major tournaments in KLPGA
Results in LPGA majors
edit| Tournament | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kraft Nabisco Championship | T47 | ||
| LPGA Championship | T26 | T12 | |
| U.S. Women's Open | CUT | T4 | |
| du Maurier Classic | T6 | T33 |
| Tournament | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kraft Nabisco Championship | T15 | T21 | T57 | 7 | T5 | T42 | T30 | T6 | T48 | T56 | T33 |
| LPGA Championship | 8 | T33 | T30 | T30 | T7 | T3 | T15 | T10 | CUT | T42 | T43 |
| U.S. Women's Open | T26 | T22 | T30 | T16 | T31 | T41 | T8 | T6 | CUT | ||
| Women's British Open ^ | 2 | T61 | CUT | CUT | CUT | CUT | CUT | T24 | T31 | CUT |
^ The Women's British Open replaced the du Maurier Classic as an LPGA major in 2001.
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" tied
Summary
edit- Starts – 48
- Wins – 0
- 2nd-place finishes – 1
- 3rd-place finishes – 1
- Top 3 finishes – 2
- Top 5 finishes – 4
- Top 10 finishes – 13
- Top 25 finishes – 19
- Missed cuts – 9
- Most consecutive cuts made – 16
- Longest streak of top-10s – 3
Team appearances
editAmateur
- Espirito Santo Trophy (representing South Korea): 1994
References
edit- ^ a b "Mi-Hyun Kim, A Tribute To A Retiring LPGA Star". 7 October 2012.
- ^ a b "Mi Hyun Kim: 'Seoul Sister' takes a final bow". LPGA. October 2012.
- ^ "Kim makes $100,000 donation to aid victims of Greensburg, Kan., tornado". LPGA. 11 May 2007.
- ^ "Mi Hyun Kim's Donation Makes a Difference in Kansas". LPGA. 29 April 2008.
- ^ "Pre Tournament Interviews: SemGroup Championship Presented by John Q. Hammons". LPGA. 29 April 2008.
- ^ a b Nichols, Beth Ann (25 March 2010). "Kim learns to balance golf and motherhood". Golfweek.
- ^ "Mi Hyun Kim profile". LPGA. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
- ^ "이원희 김미현 이혼이유는?...김미현 은퇴 이것때문에". 금강일보 (in Korean). 29 June 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2022.
External links
edit- Mi-Hyun Kim at the LPGA Tour official site
- Biography on seoulsisters.com