Se-ri Pak To Join LPGA Hall of Fame

After a moment of hesitation, Se-ri Pak (30, CJ) took off her socks and plunged into the water; her white feet hidden in socks, glowing in contrast with her tanned legs. The dark and light contrast showed Pak’s long-time endurance in the field.

At the 18th hole of the sudden-death play-off at U.S. Women’s Open on July 7, 1998, Pak scooped her ball out of a water hazard and proceeded to score a dramatic major league victory. Pak’s win gave hope and courage to Korean people, who, at the time, were suffering at the hands of a foreign exchange crisis.

Today, nine years after Pak’s rookie-year – 1998 – she will be inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame.

Her qualification for the hall of fame will come when she turns in her first round score card at the 2007 McDonald’s Championship to be held at Bulle Rock golf course (par 72), in Havre De Grace, Maryland, on June 7.

Gaining entry into the LPGA Hall of Fame is every women golfer’s dream. To qualify for it, players must have played at least ten seasons, accumulated more than 27 points, and won at least one of the following— an LPGA major championship, the Vare Trophy for lowest average score, or the player of the year.

Pak already accumulated 29 points with five major tournament wins (10p), 18 LPGA wins (18p) and winning the Vare Trophy in 2003, but has not yet qualified for the Hall of Fame as she has not made ten starts in each of ten seasons. The McDonald’s Championship is Pak’s tenth tournament this year.

There are a total of 23 Hall of Fame members including one who was inducted because of her contribution to the sport. Patty Burg, who recorded a total of 60 wins, was inducted in 1951, and the “Empress of Golf,” Annika Sorenstam, gained entrance in 2003.

Pak wants to celebrate the historical moment by winning the championship. She has won the McDonald’s Championship three times in 1998, 2002, and 2006.

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