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Eun-Hee Ji started playing golf at the age
of 13. She was a member of the Korean national (amateur) team
in 2003, and won the Korean Women's Amateur one year. She
turned pro in late 2004. She played on the KLPGA in 2005 and
2006, and won several events on the Ladies Asian Tour as well.
In late 2006, she finished tied for 34th at
LPGA Q-School to earn conditional status on tour for 2007.
She started the year playing exclusively on the KLPGA, where
she immediately became one of the top players on tour. She
won her first event on tour at the fourth event she played
in 2007, the Phoenix Park Classic, and immediately followed
that up with a second win at the 2nd KB Star Tour event the
following week. That win was a bit controversial: her playing
partner, Hee Young Park, was in the lead when she noticed
that Ji had forgotten one of her clubs on the ground. Park
picked it up and stashed it in her bag, then forgot about
it. Ji later noticed that she was missing a club, then saw
that Park had it. By mentioning it, she forced a two stroke
penalty on Park for carrying too many clubs. Ji went on to
beat Park in a playoff.
The next week, Ji almost made it three in
a row. She was leading through two rounds, but KLPGA star
Sun Ju Ahn caught her and beat her in the final round. Although
Ji would not win again on the KLPGA in 2007, she was often
in the hunt, notching six additional second place finishes.
The most heartbreaking of these was at the Hite Cup, where
she led almost the entire week only to lose on the final hole
thanks to a double bogey. Nonetheless, she would earn over
300 million won for the season and finished second on the
money list behind Shin, a great year by any measure.
Ji didn't play many LPGA events in 2007, but
she made the ones she did play count. In her first LPGA event,
the Evian Masters, she shot a blistering 66 in the first round
and went on to finish tied for 16th. She played the Women's
British Open, her first Major, the following week, and did
even better. In tough conditions she wound up tied with Se
Ri Pak for fifth. After a disappointing turn at the Canadian
Women's Open, she played the LPGA's Korean event in October,
and once again was brilliant. In the second round, she shot
the low score, a sizzling 68 in very hard conditions. That
left her by herself in second place, one shot behind Suzann
Pettersen. Alas, the third round was canceled due to wind,
and Ji finished at that spot.
In just four events played, Ji earned enough
money to secure an exempt card for the LPGA for 2008. She
finished 52nd on the money list thanks to her three top twenties.
She took full advantage in 2008. She teamed
with KLPGA superstar Ji Yai Shin at the Women's World Cup
in January, and had it not been for an inspired Philippines
team, they would have won that title. Ji had a top five early
in the year at the Safeway International, but it was at the
Wegman's in Rochester in May that she broke through with her
first LPGA career win. Facing Suzann Pettersen coming down
the stretch, Ji made one clutch putt after another to seize
the win out of the Norwegian's hands.
Eun Hee was far from done. She contended again
just a few weeks later in Arkansas and collected a top five
finish at the British Women's Open. All in all, it was a fantastic
second year for the young budding star: she earned nearly
a million bucks and collected 8 top ten finishes in all.
Ji started 2009 very well, with top 20 finishes
in her first five events. She also played well at the State
Farm, finishing tied for 6th after a final round 63. But by
far her top event in 2009, and indeed her entire pro career,
was that year's US Women's Open. With 9 holes to go, she was
right in the hunt, but a double bogey on the 10th hole seemed
a deadly blow. After that, however, she rallied bigtime, making
two birdies to climb into a share of the lead. It all came
down to the final hole, and Ji delivered, nailing a 20 foot
birdie putt to win the Major.
Interestingly, Ji did not have a top fifteen
finish the rest of the year, although she did play well at
the season ending Kyoraku Cup, where she beat Japan's top
star, Ai Miyazato.
Ji's weird post-Major malaise continued in
2010. Although she had the occasional good round, she did
not manage a single top ten all year, her best finish being
a tie for 12th at the Safeway Classic. She finished only 57th
on the money list, a far cry from her top 15 finish the previous
year.
Ji continued to look for her first post-Open
top ten in 2011, to no avail. She still finished 48th on the
money list, but her best finish all year was only a 20th place.
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