Kim In-Kyung

1.1. Early Life

In-Kyung Kim was born on June 13, 1988, in South Korea. She later established her residence in Rancho Santa Fe, California, U.S., a suburb north of San Diego, where she frequently practiced at Fairbanks Ranch Country Club as an honorary member.

1.2. Amateur Career

Kim distinguished herself as a promising amateur golfer. She was a member of the Korean National Team in both 2003 and 2004, a period during which she secured three tournament victories on the International Junior Golf tour. In 2005, she continued her success on the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) circuit, winning the Hargray Junior Classic. That same year, she further demonstrated her talent by winning the prestigious U.S. Girls' Junior and earned medalist honors in the stroke play portion of the U.S. Women's Amateur championship.

2.1. Turning Professional

In December 2006, while still an amateur, Kim participated in the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament held in Florida. Her performance at the tournament, where she earned co-medalist honors, secured her full exempt status for the 2007 LPGA Tour season. Following this achievement, she immediately turned professional, embarking on her career in the sport's highest ranks.

2.2. Early Professional Achievements

In her rookie year of 2007, Kim demonstrated her potential by achieving four top-10 finishes on the LPGA Tour. Her breakthrough professional victory came in 2008 when she claimed her first LPGA Tour title at the Longs Drugs Challenge. In June 2009, she secured her second career LPGA title, winning the LPGA State Farm Classic in Illinois by a single stroke over fellow South Korean golfer Se Ri Pak.

Later that year, in December 2009, Kim achieved her third professional title and first win on the Ladies European Tour (LET) at the Omega Dubai Ladies Masters. Her success on the LET continued into 2010, where she was honored with the LET Rookie of the Year award after winning 193.15 K EUR in four LET events, including three top-10 finishes.

2.3. Key Milestones and Highlights

A significant highlight of Kim's career came in November 2010 when she won her fourth professional title and third LPGA title at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational. The day after her victory, Kim made headlines by announcing her decision to donate her entire winnings of 220.00 K USD to charity. Half of the prize money went to the Lorena Ochoa Foundation, which supports educational programs for children in Mexico, and the other half was allocated to an American charity. This substantial donation represented nearly 20 percent of her total winnings for the 2010 season, demonstrating a profound commitment to philanthropy.

In 2012, Kim experienced a moment of significant disappointment at the 2012 Kraft Nabisco Championship, a major championship. On the 18th green of the final day, she missed a one-foot putt that would have secured her first major title, subsequently losing in a playoff to Sun-Young Yoo. This setback was followed by a relatively dry spell on the LPGA Tour, which included two more playoff losses, although she did manage a victory on the European Ladies Tour in 2014.

Her LPGA Tour dry spell concluded in October 2016 with a win at the Reignwood LPGA Classic in China. The year 2017 proved to be a career resurgence for Kim, as she secured three LPGA Tour victories. These included the ShopRite LPGA Classic in June and the Marathon Classic in July. The pinnacle of her 2017 season, and indeed her career, was her first major championship title at the 2017 Women's British Open in August, a triumph that solidified her place among golf's elite.

After a long and impactful career, In-Kyung Kim retired from professional golf following the 2024 season.

3.1. LPGA Tour Wins

Kim secured seven victories on the LPGA Tour, including one major championship.

Kim's LPGA Tour playoff record stands at 0 wins and 5 losses.

3.2. Ladies European Tour Wins

Kim won four tournaments on the Ladies European Tour.

3.3. Major Championship Wins

In-Kyung Kim's sole major championship victory came at the 2017 Women's British Open.

4.1. Results Timeline

Kim's performance in major championships from 2006 to 2024 is detailed below. The Evian Championship was added as a major in 2013.

Notes: CUT = missed the half-way cut; NT = no tournament; T = tied; Cells left blank indicate that the player did not play in the tournament.

4.2. Summary of Major Performance

In-Kyung Kim competed in 68 major championship events, making the cut in 52 of them.

Her longest streak of consecutive cuts made was 16, spanning from the 2008 U.S. Open to the 2012 LPGA Championship. She also recorded a streak of four consecutive top-10 finishes from the 2010 LPGA to the 2011 Kraft Nabisco.