By Yoon Chul
Staff Reporter

It was a bittersweet return to Korea for Shin Ji-yai Wednesday. The LPGA's rookie of the year was welcomed by hundreds of fans at Incheon International Airport just days after she lost the player of the year race to Lorena Ochoa of Mexico by a single point at the Tour Championship.

It was, without a doubt, an incredible rookie year for Shin and yet still, it seems she has unfinished business.

"I want to do better next year. And I will try again to grab player of the year award, which I just missed at the end," Shin said.

"Though I felt sad that I missed it, I achieved what I wanted in my debut year in the LPGA.

"I also tried to do too much at the end the season. With this valuable experience, I won't make the same mistake again next time," she added.

The 21-year-old also responded to suggestions that she lost to Ochoa because her fellow Koreans did so well.

"I made a mistakes by myself. Golf is definitely a personal competition," she explained.

Shin complained of fatigue during the final weeks of the season and she plans to address that with a change in her offseason training strategy.

"I did balance training over the last three or four years. But I feel that I need more stamina to play strongly until the end of the season. So I plan to do some weight training to build strength."

Up next for Shin will be the Korea-Japan Women's National Golf Team Match Play Competition from Dec. 4 to 5.

"I have never produced a good result at that competition. But this time I want to help Korea get the victory."

She will then rest for a few weeks before going overseas for more training in January.

yc@koreatimes.co.kr