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Soo Jin Yang turned pro in late 2008 and joined
the KLPGA as a rookie in 2009. With her looks and great length
off the tee, she quickly grabbed sponsorship deals. She also
had a solid year on the course. She finished 16th on the money
list, the runner up (to Shin Ae Ahn) in the Rookie of the
Year standings. She had 4 top tens during the season. Her
best finish was a second place behind So Yeon Ryu at the Woori
Bank Championship.
Yang had a breakthrough season on the KLPGA
in 2010. Her first great moment came at the year's first Major,
the Korean Women's Open. Yang found herself in a pitched battle
for the title with several amateur stars. She had a chance
to win the event with a par on the final hole, but made bogey.
Fortunately, she triumphed over one of the amateurs in the
playoff, and thus collected not only her first KLPGA win,
but her first Major.
She played brilliantly the rest of the season.
Yang grabbed a second win later in the year, as well as three
other seconds, three more thirds, and 13 total top tens. She
managed to finish second on the money list behind only superstar
Bo Mee Lee. She was also third in the league in scoring with
a 71.07 average. Without question, the promising teen had
become a genuine star.
Soo Jin had another great year in 2011. On
the KLPGA tour, she made over 300 million won and finished
4th on the money list. The biggest highlight of her Korean
season came at the Doosan Match Play, which Yang won in relentless
style, beating former champ Bo Kyung Kim, former LPGA player
HJ Choi, and KLPGA winner Ji Na Lim en route to the finals,
where she triumphed over fellow KLPGA star Hyun Hwa Shim 4
& 3. Other highlights among her five top tens include
a 2nd place at the year's second Major, the KLPGA Championship,
and two third places.
Yang also played an LPGA Major for the first
time in 2011, finishing tied for 49th at the US Women's Open.
But her biggest LPGA highlight came at the Hana Bank Championship.
She actually had the lead after round 2, and played in the
final group on Sunday. She wound up tied for 3rd with Jimin
Kang and Brittany Lincicome, three shots behind winner Ya
Ni Tseng.
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