BETHESDA, MARYLAND | As a reminder, In Gee Chun has won three major championships, tying her with Nancy Lopez and a who’s-who of LPGA Tour elite. The latest one for Chun, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship – which the 27-year-old South Korean won by opening a huge lead, losing it late on Sunday, and then battling back with a birdie and two pars on the final three holes to edge Lexi Thompson and Minjee Lee by a shot – will be remembered for a lot of things, including Chun’s first-round 64, a course record at the New Blue course at Congressional Country Club, as well as her steadiness in the heat of an emotional final round.
It’s also worth noting that Chun is the only player in history to win three major championships and a Korea Women’s Open (arguably the most difficult non-major championship to win). She is also the only LPGA Tour player in the modern era to make three of her first four victories majors. Throw in her elegant swing, graceful carriage and infectious smile and it’s hard not to love Chun the golfer.
But despite all of it, golf is the least interesting thing about her.
“Given all that has happened, I'm just so happy for this win. I'm so proud of myself. And I want to thank everyone who believed in me, even during my down time."
In Gee Chun
For starters, Chun has a genius-level IQ and is a math autodidact. As a kid, she had to decide between numerous math scholarship offers or a career in golf. She chose the latter, and still got her degree at Korea University. She is also a wonderful cook and a gracious host, the kind of creative Iron Chef-type talent who can open the refrigerator, look at the contents and come up with a culinary masterpiece. Before heading to suburban Washington, she introduced her neighbor, Sei Young Kim, to baked tuna and macaroni and cheese. Chun, Kim and Minjee Lee live in the same cul-de-sac in Las Colinas near Dallas.
“I’m working on steak at the moment,” Chun said of her latest culinary diversion. “I’m experimenting with seasonings and temperatures.”
Then there is the art. She is an accomplished painter on a unique medium. Chun uses oils to create fantasy landscapes and characters on sneakers. A week from Sunday, she will be back in Korea collaborating with a famous artist on some one-of-a-kind sneakers to be auctioned off for one of her foundations.
Between hoisting the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship trophy – one she earned with the kind of steady-but-gutsy performance fans have come to expect from the best South Korean players in the world – and her flight to Incheon, Chun will be in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, fundraising for the In Gee Chun Lancaster Country Club Educational Fund. After winning the 2015 U.S. Women’s Open at Lancaster, Chun became so close with the members and staff that she created a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit to send club employees and their dependents to college. Each year, she gives close to $100,000 in scholarships. She will spend Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday after her win at Congressional playing golf, hosting dinners and even refereeing a swim meet.
She’s a voracious reader, a student of philosophy, an engaging conversationalist on subjects ranging from Nietzsche’s “The Genealogy of Morals” to the differences between K-pop and American country music. She’s Einstein in an Asian version of Audrey Hepburn – a loyal friend, a kind soul, and an open and honest survivor of depression.
That’s the thing about genius: It’s always one deep meditation away from darkness. Chun lumbered under the weight of a beautiful mind and unrealistic expectations for quite some time. The pressures of her early wins didn’t help. After two majors in two years, she went winless for two years. That would have been tough on a sensitive young woman in the best of circumstances. For Chun, it was especially brutal. She was one of the most popular players in South Korea, a heavy burden for anyone, but when a young and brilliant woman faces the relentless scrutiny of a demanding Korean media and fanbase, it can lead to some bad times.
In October of 2018, at a press conference after the South Korean team won the International Crown in front of the largest gallery ever recorded at an LPGA Tour event, the first question from Korean media was “In Gee, when will you win again?”
The answer turned out to be, next week. She captured the HanaBank Championship in Incheon seven days after the team victory in the Crown. After that win, Chun wept without shame – part release and part cry for help and understanding.
Tears flowed at Congressional, too. When asked about her battles with depression and what this major victory meant in that process, she said, “When I was not OK, I thought I had to say that I was OK because I didn’t want everyone to worry. So I just kept saying, ‘I'm OK.’
“To be honest, last week I talked to my older sister (10 years her senior), and I really cried. I said, ‘It’s really hard to stay in the U.S. I don't know what I want to do. I don't have any goals, and I feel really hurt.’ She said, ‘In Gee, just quit golf. You're the important thing, not golf.’ When I heard what she said, I decided I didn’t want to quit golf. I believe I still have a spirit, and I said to myself, ‘In Gee, you still want to play golf.’
“Given all that has happened, I'm just so happy for this win,” she added through tears. “I'm so proud of myself. And I want to thank everyone who believed in me, even during my down time. My family, my friends, my managers, coach, sponsors, caddie, they never gave up on me. They believed. I really appreciate that.”
Top: In Gee Chun gives her lead away on the front but two par-5 birdies get it back at Congressional
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