Jang Leading Band of Koreans in SBS Open
By Jonathan Sanfilippo
Staff Reporter
When Jang Jeong was a child, she didn't have much interest in sports.
She'd occasionally go skating or skiing, but didn't take either activity very seriously.
It wasn't until she was a teenager that Jang discovered golf, the sport that would greatly influence her life. She'd spend countless hours on the links honing her skills and eventually became one of the top golfers in not only South Korea, but in the entire world.
In fact, Jang, who is No. 12 in the women's world rankings released Monday, is the highest rated Korean player entered in the SBS Open, the first event on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour, which will take place Thursday through Saturday at the Turtle Bay Resort's Arnold Palmer Course in Kahuku, Hawaii.
The SBS Open is the latest stop in a prolific nine-year LPGA career for the 27-year-old Jang, who is often called "J.J." She's finished in the top 10 in 61 LPGA tournaments. That includes winning the Women's British Open in 2005 and the Wegmans LPGA tournament in 2006 then compiling four top-three finishes last year. She's earned $5,029,090 (4.8 billion won) in career prize money on the tour, with $1,038,598 (982 million won) of that coming in 2007.
Jang has also used her achievements to draw sponsorship from companies like IBK, Cobra Golf and Trigelle, and to contribute to charities, such as Operation Smile, an organization that helps children with facial deformities.
But even as she continues to gain international recognition, the roots of Jang's success will always be traced back to her discovery of golf in Korea.
She was born in Daejeon, where she grew up near LPGA standout Pak Se-ri, who last year became the first Korean inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Jang began playing golf when she was 13 and quickly realized she had talent in the sport. Within a few years, she won the 1997 Korea Women's Open and the 1998 Korea Women's Amateur.
Having conquered domestic golf, Jang decided to take her skills to the LPGA in the United States. In her first attempt at qualifying, she earned a spot on the tour, considered the top echelon of women's golf, in 1999 at the age of 19.
Since then, Jang, who now resides in Orlando, Fla., has gained respect for her playing ability and solid work ethic. Known as a strong putter, she has tried to improve other aspects of her game, with training that ranges from practicing on the course to lifting weights to add strength to her 1.6-meter frame.
Jang is one of at least 30 golfers from South Korea scheduled to compete in the SBS Open. Other highly ranked Korean participants include No. 14-ranked Lee Jee-young, No. 21 Lee Seon-hwa, No. 22 Jeon Mi-jeong and No. 25 Ji Eun-hee.
Han Hee-won, who placed seventh at the SBS Open to become the top finisher from Korea last year, is also expected to compete in this week's event. She's currently ranked 38th in the world.