“My confidence is coming back little by little.”
Bae Sang-moon (36) was satisfied with the result after finishing tied for 8th at the Asian Tour International Series Qatar (total prize money of 2 million dollars).안전놀이터
Bae Sang-moon made 3 bogeys in the 4th round on the last day of the tournament held at Doha Golf Club (par 72) in Qatar on the 19th, but pulled out 6 birdies and hit 3 under par 69. Bae Sang-moon, who recorded a final total of 2 over par 290, finished the tournament in a tie for 8th place with Park Sang-hyun (40). The championship was won by Andy Ogletree (USA) who scored a total of 7 under par 281 strokes.
Bae Sang-moon took on a new challenge this year. As opportunities to participate in the American Professional Golf (PGA) tour became increasingly narrow, he knocked on the door of the International Series.
The International Series, which is held as an Asian Tour, is held in 10 tournaments a year, and has grown in size with Asian Tour players as well as European and LIV golf players participating. Even if there are not as many world-class players participating as on the PGA Tour, it is a good stage to prepare for a leap forward.
Bae Sang-moon, who won two wins on the PGA Tour, returned from military service in 2017, but has not been able to produce clear results since. The biggest reason was that he couldn’t find his previous performance after returning, perhaps because he couldn’t play during his military service. Since his return, he has played 5 seasons from the 2017-2018 season to the 2021-2022 season, but he has never been in the top 200 FedEx Cup points. He lost his confidence as he failed to produce better results than he had hoped for.
Bae Sang-moon, who prepared for the new season while training in Thailand, achieved great results in regaining confidence through two international series as planned. Last week, after a tie for 36th at the International Series Oman, he finished in the top 10 at his second tournament.
It is the first time Bae Sang-moon has recorded the top 10 in a regular tournament since a tie for 6th at the Korea Professional Golf (KPGA) Korean Tour Shinhan Donghae Open in 2021. On the PGA Tour, he has not been in the top 10 since a tie for 6th at Barclays in August 2015.
The last day’s match was also good. Up to the 13th hole, it was 1 over par and stayed in the mid-lower ranks, but starting with a birdie on the 14th hole (par 4), it started to rise in the rankings by catching three consecutive birdies on the 15th and 16th holes (above par 4). And by adding another birdie on the last 18th hole (par 5), he finished the tournament in the top 10.
Bae Sang-moon, who has finished her international series, will move to the United States on the 20th and compete in the Puerto Rico Open, which will be held from March 2nd, and challenge to win.