From rags to riches: Farmer’s son is PGA champ and pride of South Korea

PGA champ is farmer’s son who picked up golf at 19

JEJU, South Korea — Y.E. Yang was already 19 when he first picked up an iron at the country club where he had a low-wage job shagging golf balls. He practiced late into the night after the paying customers had gone until he became good enough to turn pro.

Now, at 37, following a stunning victory over Tiger Woods, he is the first Asian-born man to win a major golf tournament — not to mention the pride of a golf-crazy nation and the toast of a continent.

“Congratulations to Yang Yong-eun for being the first Asian to win the PGA!” read hastily made banners hanging at the Ora Country Club on the resort island of Jeju, where Yang spent his days picking up thousands of balls and his nights practicing his swing.

Since Se Ri Pak captured the LPGA title and the U.S. Women’s Open in 1998, South Korea has been seized by golf mania, with sleek new resorts sprouting up and golfers packing virtual driving ranges for quick fixes.

South Korean women now dominate the LPGA Tour, with eight players winning a combined 11 majors. The men have been slower to succeed: Yang and K.J. Choi are the only PGA Tour players who learned the game in South Korea before going to the United States.

Yang, known as “Son of the Wind” for his consistency even on windy days, had beaten Woods at a tournament in 2006, but never in a major.

Woods, the top player in the world, had never lost in the 14 previous majors in which he had taken a lead into the final round. Yang went into the tournament ranked 110th.

Unfazed by the gallery that trailed Woods, Yang prevailed, keeping his calm and then pumping his fist into the air when he had nailed the title, thanks in large part to a thrilling shot over a tree and onto the green from 210 yards on the 18th hole.

The Korea Professional Golfers’ Association joked that Yang deserves a new moniker: “Tiger Killer.” And though Woods, whose mother is Thai, is celebrated across Asia, the region now has a homegrown men’s champion.

“It’s a great, great day for Asian golf,” Asian Tour executive chairman Kyi Hla Han told The Associated Press. “Probably our biggest day. It’s always been our hope that we will see an Asian player win a major, and that day is here.”

Across South Korea, golf fans set their alarms for 4 a.m. to watch the final round take place halfway around the world in Chaska, Minn. Even South Korea’s president, Lee Myung-bak, woke up before dawn to see Yang play. He later phoned to congratulate the champion.

“I woke up at dawn today to watch the broadcast, and you played in a calm manner,” Lee told Yang, according to Lee’s office. “First of all, you enhanced our people’s morale by winning the major title for the first time as an Asian.”

Yang calls himself an “average Joe” from a humble farming family from a village near Seogwipo. He says he once aspired to be a bodybuilder and dreamed of owning his own gym.

But a knee injury forced him to reconsider his bodybuilding career, and at age 19, he took a job collecting golf balls at one of Jeju’s posh golf resorts.

Most South Korean golfers go through a rigorous “elite” course for aspiring pros. But Yang was already far older than the students training to becoming pro golfers, and he didn’t have the money for lessons or green fees.

He agreed to pick up balls as a trainee in exchange for off-hours access to the driving range and a small monthly wage, officials said.

Yang is legendary for having arrived as early as 5 a.m. to practice before the range opened and returning to hit more balls after closing time, even stringing up his own lights after dark.

Kim Young-chan, executive director of the driving range, said Yang stood out back then — but he certainly never expected him to beat Tiger Woods. He said the PGA win left him speechless.

Yang had played only about 100 rounds of golf by the time he left the country club for compulsory military services. When he was finished, he went to New Zealand to concentrate on golf for three months. In 1996, he turned pro — against his father’s wishes.

Yang Han-joon, who grows root vegetables, pressured his son to join him in the fields. “Golf is for rich people,” he recalled saying. “Why are you trying to become a golfer? Please don’t do it.”

Jeju, famous for its waterfalls, volcanoes, seafood and sunshine, is a popular honeymoon spot and in recent years has become a luxury golf destination. Green fees can be several hundred dollars a round.

Yang’s mother, Ko Hee-soon, said Yang was determined to leave their tough life behind.

“When we urged him to go into farming, he would say: ‘I’m not going to live like my father,’” she recalled, beaming. Ko said they would throw a party to celebrate.

Now married with three sons, Yang has more than $3.2 million in golf winnings, $1.35 million of it coming Sunday.

“I am so happy and proud of him,” said his older brother, Yang Yong-hyuk. “What else can I feel? Since he has finally reached the peak, I hope that he will work even harder to become better and defend his position.”

Kim Won-jun, a golf coach who knows Yang, said nerves of steel set him apart from other players: “He is in total control during his game, so when he has the chance, he’s able to immediately seize it.”

There are 3 million to 3.5 million golfers in South Korea, said Max Garske, chief executive of the PGA of Australia. Compare that with 15 million next door in Japan, which also has about 3,500 quality golf courses to South Korea’s 200.

Already, Yang is proving to be an inspiration for his countrymen.

“I think Yang’s victory will give young Asian players a confidence that they can beat the odds in any situation,” said Suh Gee-young, who woke up early to watch the tournament and take a few practice swings before work.

Lee Jong-hoon, 33, said he’s not a huge golf fan but loves Yang’s rags-to-riches story.

“I’m a fan of Yang because he overcame many obstacles to become a golfer,” he said. “I think what makes his victory especially meaningful is not only the fact that he’s Asian but also the fact that he was a true underdog.”

Associated Press writer Jean H. Lee reported from Seoul. AP writers Dennis Passa in Brisbane, Australia; Jae Hee Suh and Nicolai Hartvig in Seoul, and AP National Writer Nancy Armour in Chaska, Minn., also contributed to this report.