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Mindy Kim was born in South Korea, but came
to California as a young girl. She qualified for the Futures
Tour while still 17 years old, and played that tour in 2007,
where her top finish was a tie for fifth. She easily maintained
her tour card for 2008.
2008 was her breakout year on the Futures.
Still only 18, one of the youngest girls on tour, she started
her year with top tens in two of her first three events. But
it was at the Mercedes Championship in Kansas in mid-May that
Mindy broke through with her first win. She followed that
up with another victory at the following event, the Aurora
Health Care Championship.
From that point on, Kim rarely finished outside
of the top ten. In August, she collected a third win in Kentucky,
pretty much sealing her tour card for the LPGA in 2009. In
the end, she finished second on the money list with $79,270,
a total that would have led the money list almost any other
year, but was still behind Korean American star Vicky Hurst
in 2008.
Mindy's rookie year on the LPGA wasn't that
great, although she did finish well enough on the money list
(92nd) to maintain reasonable status on tour. She had only
a single top ten, qualified for only one Major, and made less
than $100,000.
She had roughly the same kind of season in
2010, making slightly less money but finishing slightly higher
on the money list. Her status remained category 11 for the
2011 season.
2011 was a bit of a breakthrough season for
Kim. She notched four top tens during the year, including
a tie for 5th at the State Farm Classic. She also shot her
career best round at that tournament, a 64. In all, she made
over $250,000 during 2011, finishing in the top 40 on the
money list for the first time, and earned top status for 2012.
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