Korean Golf

[ej002]

[quote name='rony' timestamp='1310436952' post='3383386']
I think young LPGA Korean girls practice their golf. Young LPGA American girls practice putting on their make up.
[/quote]


It a valid point, and probably why the American girls get the better endorsements.

[Oldboy]

might also be that you're only thinking of American company endorsements .. the korean players get plenty of endorsement money from Asia

[dana dahlquist]

I have quite a few friends on the Men's Mini tours some have been on the big stage and or won a few Nationwide events. It’s totally different for several reasons between the Men’s tour and the LPGA.

I can only speculate from personal experience on the matter. But, Ill says that parent involvement seems a touch higher with the girls than the boys. However the respect factor in the culture is the same across the board.

So really saying it’s the model on the ladies tour, sure. I’m not so sure if it’s the same for the men.

I can name guys like Terry Noe “last amateur golfer to beat Tiger, and my old roommate” he was a super star. Quit playing at age twenty. Now teaches in Korea.

The list goes on and on.

Point is the has to be a bit of balance, the LPGA is hurting not because of the players, its because it needs to be fun for the players and the wallet.

I had one player take a break because she made ten times the money off the course.
Sorry typed this on the cell phone, hope its clear..

[sheets]

When I visited Geoff J in texarkana he told me that the korean children are taught from the green out, mastering the fundamentals of the short game first, then taught to master the sand wedge etc, and that they are not even allowed to touch a driver for xxxx time, and that they must master the shorter clubs, first.

Now it is very very possible that Geoff either made this up or embellished just a tad to illustrate a point that certainly needed to be made, but I believe that there is at least some truth to this.

[gunny86]

[quote][color=#1C2837][size=2]Korean men have had some success on US Tour (Choi in number of wins and Yang because he's only one w/ major), but they're hardly dominant or anywhere near the success of Korean women. So if the developmental comments apply to both Korean boys and girls, what accounts for women's disproportionate success?

**And btw, Yani Tseng is Taiwanese not Korean. [/size][/color][/quote]


The purse is much bigger in PGA so naturally there are more depth in talent, or at least that's my opinion. Plus korean men are not as motivated as much as girls. It's always harder for girls to come out on top so they work harder. A lot of the boys are distracted by video games and such. Last I heard more females are now going to college than males.


If you look at the success of Korean women's : archery, handball, short track teams compare to men's team you will also recognize this pattern.

[gators78]

[quote name='ej002' timestamp='1310503479' post='3385909']
[quote name='rony' timestamp='1310436952' post='3383386']
I think young LPGA Korean girls practice their golf. Young LPGA American girls practice putting on their make up.
[/quote]


It a valid point, and probably why the American girls get the better endorsements.
[/quote]

This partially but also Dana touched on it above, other than maybe Se Ri Pak I have never watched a korean woman play a round of golf look like they're enjoying it. Honestly it looks like indentured servitude out there.

[jaydub1228]

The men have to serve a mandatory 2 years in the military in Korea. There's a baseball player on the Cleveland Indians that still has to go back and serve his 2 years. It throws a wrench in your golf career when you have to stop playing entirely for 2 years to serve your country. imo you just see alot more on the lpga because the mens tour is so competitive

[Lecoqchateau]

[quote name='rony' timestamp='1310436952' post='3383386']
I think young LPGA Korean girls practice their golf. Young LPGA American girls practice putting on their make up.
[/quote]

+1

[Lecoqchateau]

[quote name='zerofade' timestamp='1310504198' post='3385956']
might also be that you're only thinking of American company endorsements .. the korean players get plenty of endorsement money from Asia
[/quote]

Way more than here.

[cuddytime]

[quote name='ej002' timestamp='1310503479' post='3385909']
[quote name='rony' timestamp='1310436952' post='3383386']
I think young LPGA Korean girls practice their golf. Young LPGA American girls practice putting on their make up.
[/quote]


It a valid point, and probably why the American girls get the better endorsements.
[/quote]

just thought i'd add... just because you recognize the brand name does not mean you get more money (i'm assuming you mean better endorsements = more $$$)

ie. look up mirae asset. it's a pretty large financial service company in asia.

[CoolHacker]

Mirae Asset is now a partial owner of Titleist company.

[paulchung]

First of all I LOLed at Korea being poor. I think the reason why koreans are doing well in women's golf is because it is much easier to break through. The men's tour is much more competitive, rightfully so considering the amount of $$$ being thrown around, compared to the LPGA and thus, it is harder for asian guys to break through.

Playing golf in korea sucks real bad compared to the states. Green Fees are on AVERAGE $180 which includes a mandatory cart and caddie. Tee time between groups are maintained strictly at 7 minutes and if you play slow, you kinda get yelled at silently if that makes sense. I think the golfing atmosphere in Korea drives most players to be better. I have never seen a golfer in korea who does not start out with a lesson, while I've seen multiple self-taught players here in the states. Since it is so expensive to get on the course, I believe most players spend most of their time during the weedays at ranges. I think it is the same for junior golfers. They spend most of their time on the range rather on the course grooving their swing.

[wmblake2000]

[quote name='hoganfan924' timestamp='1310415462' post='3382709']
To the point where some of the Korean golf academies don't even allow beginners to strike a golf ball until many weeks into the program. They focus on developing a certain level of pre-swing fundamentals then move on to developing a swing motion and getting that to a certain level of proficiency before introducing a golf ball to strike.
[/quote]

I spoke to a guy who learned to play in Korea - an American guy. His learning was exactly what you describe and I got the impression this was pretty common. The other thing he described is he paid a monthly fee that included practice balls - when he'd go to the range, he'd get a 10-minute (eg, brief) lesson, every time as part of this fee. So frequent, but brief lessons focused on the next step in the learning process.

[wmblake2000]

[quote name='nevets88' timestamp='1310461835' post='3384079']
Kind of off topic, but I flipped through a couple of Korean and Japanese instruction manuals in one of the NYC Korean owned golf shops. It was chock full of diagrams and I was really curious as to the explanations, what they had to say about impact, downswing, etc.... I wish I could read Korean and Japanese. I actually thought they were more compelling than your typical American instruction book.
[/quote]

I was talking to a Japanese guy today, and he said that Japanese golf mags are much more detailed and technical about the swing than our mags.

[itsjappo]

work ethics, discipline and personalities are different.

[rouski12]

The main difference is work ethic. I play collegiate baseball with two korean kids. One kid's brother golfs at Temple and is supposedly a big timer. You would never imagine the amount of work and time this kid puts into the gym. I would imagine his brother does the same with his golf game. It's all about dedication, time, and effort.