There is a golfer who excels at a certain golf course. In the Korean Professional Golfers Association (KPGA) tour, Kim Chan-woo (25) who has been nicknamed "youngam man" is a good example. Since his official debut in the KPGA tour in 2022, Kim has two wins in total.
Coincidentally, however, they both won the championship at the Yeongam 45 Golf Club in Yeongam County, South Jeolla Province. The 2023 Biz Play Electronic Newspaper Open, which was the first championship in his career, was won at the Cosmos Lynx Course, and the 2024 KPGA Classic, his second championship, was won at the KylPhilippe Course.
Born in Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do, he has nothing to do with Yeongam, but strangely, when he comes to Yeongam, his players call him "honorary Yeongam County."
Before leaving Thailand for off-season training in early February, Kim Chan-woo, who is doing both rehabilitation and weight-oriented training in Korea, said in a telephone interview with the Kookmin Ilbo, "I don't know why I get good grades when I go to Youngam," adding, "If I have to choose, I think it's because I like the Links-style course."
Kim Chan-woo, who acquired the golf club while following his father who was a soccer player at age 7, devoted himself to golf by taking the so-called elite golf course. As a junior, however, he only won the Gyeongsangbuk-do Governor's Cup once, a competition of the Federation of Middle and High School, and there was no decent performance. Naturally, he did not have any activities for the national team or the standing army.
However, the situation was different on the professional stage. Kim Chan-woo, who passed the full membership contest with an overwhelming performance in 2017, six strokes ahead of the second place, made his KPGA tour debut in 2022 after the COVID-19 pandemic after going through the qualifying tournament.
Of course, I had high expectations. However, he won the top 10 twice in his first year, but only ranked 80th in Genesis points, losing the seed. After going through QT again, he succeeded in staying in the 2023 season.
In September of that year, Kim was deeply touched by his first career victory at the Bizplay Electronic Newspaper Open. Kim Chan-woo, who spent his career high season ranked 24th in Genesis points, won his second career championship in May last year, and has been listed as a champion for two consecutive years.
However, last year was not a satisfactory season. "I participated in 21 competitions and failed to make the cut in 10 competitions, which is half of them," Kim said. "Of the 11 competitions that passed the cut, only three were in the top 10 including one victory."
What is clear is that Kim Chan-woo's golf has definitely changed since the 2023 season. The driving force was the dedication of Hye-jin, a 3-year-old sister who gave up her dream of becoming a flight attendant and started caddie-bagging her younger brother.
"My sister started wearing caddie bags in 2023, and I started to enjoy golf," Kim said. "I don't know the special reason. Maybe it's because I feel more comfortable than playing with a professional caddie. I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to my sister," Kim said. "She also pays me a lot depending on my performance during the offseason. Of course, there is no such thing as during the offseason. I will give you as much as you work."
It was the cause of Kim Chan-woo's unsatisfactory season. It was none other than chronic back pain. "I was sorry that I couldn't perform well due to back pain even though I was supposed to take care of my body," Kim said with a big smile. "I am constantly rehabilitating this year after the end of the season so that I don't have such regrets. MRI scans have revealed that I have recovered to normal levels."
"I have been told by my doctor that I can increase my exercise amount, so I am doing rehabilitation and weight training at the same time. Of course, I am constantly practicing swing," he said. "My body has improved a lot. I gained muscle mass and lost weight. I am looking forward to this year because I am working hard." 먹튀검증
Kim Chan-woo will go on a winter training camp in Cabinburi, Thailand for a month on Feb. 3. "My specialty is driver shots that average 320 yards. However, the accuracy is poor," he said. "I plan to focus on driver shots and short games during this training camp."
Kim Chan-woo, who prefers dynamic play like Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), is aiming to win the title for the third consecutive year. "Since I won the title for the second consecutive year, I will continue to win the title this year," he said. "I would like to win the Kolon Korean Open at Woojeong Hills Country Club in my hometown of Cheonan."