Paris Olympics 2024: Is Amy Yang Qualified to Represent South Korea After Spectacular KPMG Women’s PGA Championship Feat?

South Korea had suffered a bit of a setback in late April. A missed cut at the Ford Championship followed by a T46 and T61 at the Chevron and the JM Eagle LA Championships respectively pushed Amy Yang out of the top-15 in the world rankings. This caused her to get disqualified from the upcoming Paris Olympics automatically. But now, enter her recent win at the major, and things might not be what they seem.

The South Korean pro had emerged triumphant at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship that was held at Sahalee Country Club. Now, case in point, curiosity naturally arises whether Yang qualified for the quadrennial event that is set to take place in July.

Amy Yang’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship win and the Olympics

Yang’s exit from the top 15, back in April, caused the Asian country to have just two representatives, Jin Young Ko and Hyo Joo Kim, for the upcoming Olympics. But her win at Sahalee Country Club, which came from a score of 7-under, helped her clinch a spot at the Paris Games, as per the official LPGA Tour announcement. Interestingly, she had also represented South Korea back in 2016 at Rio de Janeiro.

The golfer was able to card a total of 15 birdies, six bogeys, and a double bogey over the four days of play. This helped her rake in a winner’s cut of $1.56 million out of the total $10.4 million in rewards alongside 100 points on the Rolex standings and a figure of 650 as Race To CME Globe points. The 100 points that she received on the world rankings were more than enough to propel her back inside the top 15 on the same.

The victory marked Amy Yang’s first major title at 34 years of age, that too at her 75th major start. As a result, she became the oldest golfer on the LPGA Tour since Angela Stanford to win a major championship. Stanford had achieved the feat at the 2018 Amundi Evian Championship at the age of 40.

It truly seems to be a special moment for the athlete, seeing as how visibly happy she was after winning the major. Yang even divulged how close she came over the years to emerge victorious at a prestigious event such as this, not to mention being able to secure a spot at the Olympics.

Yang expresses gratitude for making it into the Olympic team

“That was one of my biggest goals for this year,” divulged Amy Yang while alluding to her spot on the South Korean team for the upcoming Olympics. She mentioned how her recent performances had threatened her qualifications and pushed her out of the same before conveying her appreciation; “Missing cuts past few tournaments and I saw my world ranking went down, so I wasn’t sure if this winning was enough to make the team. But I made it, so I’m very grateful for that.

The South Korean also recounted her experience over the years as she said, “I always wanted to win a major and I came close several times and I started doubting myself, if I was ever going to win a major before I retire.” The golfer didn’t have a very good season this year as opposed to the top-5 finishes she carded back in 2023 at the Chevron Championship and Women’s Open Championship. It seems she has managed to prove herself despite all the setbacks. Take a bow, Amy Yang!