Jang Yu-bin poses with the winner's trophy. [Photo=KPGA]
Jang Yu-bin poses with the winner's trophy. [Photo=KPGA]

Jang Yu-bin claimed victory at the KPGA Classic with Imbita, which carried a purse of 700 million won (approximately $458,000), in his first win since returning from LIV Golf.

Playing Sunday at the Cypress Golf & Resort North-West Course (par 72) in Seogwipo, Jeju Island, Jang carded an eagle and four birdies against three bogeys in the final round under the modified Stableford format, accumulating 10 points to finish with a total of 49 points — four clear of runner-up Park Eun-shin.

Under the modified Stableford system, a par scores zero points, a birdie two, an eagle five and an albatross eight, while a bogey costs one point and a double bogey or worse costs three.

The victory was Jang's fourth on tour and his first in one year and eight months, since his win at the 2024 Baeksong Holdings-Asiad CC Busan Open. Taking home prize money of 140 million won, Jang reflected on his time away. "Last year on LIV Golf was very rewarding for me. Every round I played alongside world-class players helped me grow," he said. "Today I felt a little uneasy on the back nine, but the experience from last year helped me get through it without any big mistakes. I think it was an experience I simply cannot do without for the rest of my career."

Jang got off to a strong start with a birdie from 2.8 meters on the par-4 1st hole, but dropped a shot on the par-3 3rd after finding a bunker off the tee. He quickly recovered on the par-5 5th, reaching the green in two and draining a 7.4-meter eagle putt to pocket five points at once. Back-to-back birdies on holes 6 and 8 effectively sealed the win.

Park Eun-shin mounted a charge with seven birdies and three bogeys for 11 points on the final day but could not reel in Jang, settling for runner-up honors with a total of 44 points.

Woo Song-gyu carded an eagle and three birdies but gave back points with a bogey and a double bogey, adding only seven points for a total of 40 and sole third place.

Kim Min-gyu, who flew in directly after competing at LIV Golf Andalucia last week, had hoped to mount a comeback but managed only one birdie against a bogey and a double bogey, finishing at minus-2 for the round and a total of 27 points — tied for 16th.


sports@heraldcorp.com