Volume 1, Number 6 May 21, 2003
 
Pages 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Capsule Report Cards
 

Soo Yun Kang

Grade: B+

Soo-Yun Kang has not had a fantastic year in 2003, but she definitely has turned a few heads and gotten noticed. She had one magnificent performance, at the Takefuji, where for a short while a victory was very much a possibility. She also played quite well at the Chick-Fil-A the next week, although she faded at the end. Korean players do take a while to get used to playing in the States, so for that reason what she has already done is encouraging and points towards better things to come.
 

Christina Kim

Grade: A-
Keeping in mind that Christina Kim is the youngest player in the LPGA, what she has accomplished so far has been very impressive. She had a great chance to win her very first LPGA event ever played as a pro! Although she has not had a finish since then to compare (and has struggled since the Chick-Fil-A), she has still made quite a statement and has me eagerly anticipating her future development.
 

Soo Young Kim

Grade: C
Soo Young Kim is having a so so start for a rookie. It is hard for me to tell at this point just what she can do, but there are enough signs that she could be a top 50 player that I will give her the benefit of the doubt for now. She almost deserves an incomplete rather than an actual grade, but that would be wimping out. If the learning curve for Korean players holds true, we should start to see some improvement in her results over the next couple of months.
 

Young Kim

Grade: B

Perhaps we were a bit unfair to Young Kim. Her first event she notched a top ten, and so maybe we thought she was going to be an instant success. Well, she hasn't done anything like that since, although she has put together her share of pretty good rounds this year. And though she has not had a top 20 since the first event, she has had a lot of finishes in the 20s and 30s. She is also one of the top putters in the LPGA. Like the other Korean rookies, it could just be a matter of time before she hits her stride and really starts playing well.
 

Jung Yeon Lee

Grade: C

Jung Yeon Lee is one of the Korean players that I feel is not quite achieving what she is capable of. For one thing, she is a big girl and hits the ball a long way. That kind of strength is a real asset. But the rest of her game has not caught up to her length yet. I still feel she can have a breakout season in 2003 much like Hee-Won did in 2002, but so far, though she has had moments of brilliance, she has not been able to string together a great event. Perhaps her own pivotal event is just around the corner.
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