The Marmot’s Hole

Eric Adelson wrote a very nice tribute to Korean golfer Pak Se Ri, hot off her third LPGA Championship victory. She might not be the flashiest golfer on the links, but she could be the most influential:

There is plenty of talk about Tiger Woods’ impact on golf, and rightfully so. There is lots of talk about Michelle Wie’s impact on golf, and rightfully so.

But it’s hard to find an athlete who has had more influence on the sport than Se Ri Pak. The PGA Tour still does not have a great deal more African-Americans or Asians than it did when Tiger arrived on the scene. And Wie’s impact, bringing the young and the daring to both men’s and women’s tours, is still years from showing up.

But Pak has single-handedly changed golf. Eight years ago, she brought her powerful game and maniacal work ethic to a country where she did not know the language or the culture. She was afraid to go into the locker room, worried that someone would ask her a question in English and she would not know how to answer.

Yet when she took her shoes and socks off to play a shot out of the water to help her win the 1998 U.S. Women’s Open, an entire nation of Korean people fell in love. Millions of little girls (and their sports-crazed fathers) suddenly dreamed of being just like her.

“In 1998, there was one Korean on the tour,” says Karrie Webb, an Australia native. “Now there are 32. That’s because of her. She is the face of Korean golf. If they don’t already know, they should know now how much she’s done.”

Nice to see her get the recognition she deserves. Nice golf fashion, too.