LPGA U.S. Women's Open begins Thursday. Who will likely win?

Quiz: Who am I?

　#1. In what competition did Pak Se-ri win in bare foot?

　#2. Among 24 wins that Korean golfers had together in the major, in which competition did they grab the most eight wins?

　#3. In which major competition did Park In-bee win as the youngest player?

#4. In which competition did the currently No. 1 ranking Ryu So-yeon directly go on to the U.S. LPGA Tour?

The answer is U.S. Women's Open. The quiz points to the fact that Korea is greatly involved in the golf tournament. A few years ago, ESPN selected five impressive scenes in the U.S. Women's Open, where two Korean players were chosen. The first player is Pak Se-ri who grabbed victory after the 20th hole extra time by taking off her socks in 1988. The second player is Kim Ju-yeon in 2005 when she hit a 25 meter bunker shot with a birdie at round 4. Korean players are apparently the best contributor for the U.S. Women's Open.

Hopes are high this year that marks the 72nd anniversary of the U.S. Women's Open. It opens Thursday night at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster in New Jersey. Among 156 participants, 28 are Korean. They are Park In-bee, Ryu So-yeon, Chun In-gee, Kim Se-young, Yang Hee-young, all of whom play at the LPGA Tour, as well as eight Korean LPGA Tour players including Lee Jeong-eun, Jang Su-yeon and Bae Sun-woo, and Choi Hye-jin, the best national representative amateur player.

Park In-bi, who is aiming for a third win, showed confidence, saying, "New York and New Jersey were lands of fortune." This is because she grabbed four among her seven major wins there. "Tee shot is pretty easy. The green is huge and has long ruff meaning short game is particularly important," Park In-bee said. "In many cases, I need to choose middle iron or over and so I'm focusing on long club and long putt to adjust."

"The greens have a steep slope and thus require accurate positioning. Strategic play is important to minimize mistakes," said Ryu So-yeon, who had won the ANA Inspiration, the first major of this season. Both Park and Ryu visited the site in May to get an accurate grasp of the field.

Long shooters such as Lexy Thompson, Michelle Wie and Park Sung-hyun could be in an advantageous position as they can shoot a tee shot towards a broad fairway and then aim the greens with short clubs. Korean American Danielle Kang, who had a thrilling victory at the KPMG Women's PGA Championships, is aiming for her second win.

Total award money is 5 million dollars with the winner getting 900,000 dollars. The champion will get the honor to engrave her name at the silver trophy.

Jong-Seok Kim kjs0123@donga.com