He Who Stands alone

Y.E. Yang heard cheers and celebration from the crowd at the end of the 18th hole of round 4 in Hazeltine as he sank the winning put that put him two strokes ahead of the one and only Tiger Woods who was playing catch-up. Tiger isn't perfect and he doesn't win every tournament he's in but this one had a little history on the line. Throughout his entire career, Tiger had quite an impressive track record when leading after 54 holes. The top dog in the golf world had always held his composure as he's never lost after having a lead from the 55th hole and on. Along came Yang.

The 37 year old Korean native quietly stood amongst the top of the standings throughout the entire tournament as he kept himself in contention. Yang entered with his own chip on the shoulder as he was empty handed with zero major championships. As round four began, Tiger was two strokes ahead of Yang and had not even the smallest of concern about the opposing golfer making a comeback. Yang smoothly got through the course as he was standing at about even for the evening. Along came hole 14 and the swing that was probably the turning point for the standings. An eagle shot was something that no one saw coming and as the ball sank through the hole, it went from silence to an uproar. Yang was feeling upbeat and so were the supporters.

Tiger continued to focus on his own 18 holes as he was now trailing by one stroke to the dark horse, Y.E. Yang. Throughout the next three holes, the top two in the standing went head to head as Tiger tried to make up for the one stroke disadvantage. As Yang had chances to pull away for some cushioning, he couldn't capitalize as Tiger struggled to make an opportunity happen. Heading the 18th hole, it seemed as if the championship was just within the grasps of Yang.

Yang showed plenty of emotions as he did
something that no other golfer has ever done.
Snatch a lead from Tiger after the 54th hole.

By now, Koreans all across the nation had their televisions set to ESPN as the proud natives of the small peninsula sat with family members that may have never even seen a single second of golf in their life. This was a defining moment in golf history, especially for the hometown supporters. As both took their first swing, Tiger got a better look as his ball landed on the fairway and Yang's flirted with the rough. Tigers last chance to catch Yang arose, but Yang's second swing was oh so sweet as he landed his ball on the green just a few feet away from the hole. Tigers last chance at making something happen came in his second swing but it just didn't seem to be enough as it landed further from the hole on the green. When it all came down two Yang's stroke on the green, tension was in the air all throughout the national golf club in Minnesota. Slowly and surely, the ball would roll in as Yang through his fists into the air with utter joy. The supporters of the underdog excitedly showed Yang their emotions as well while Koreans all across the world were shouting with joy through their television sets. I mean why shouldn't the Koreans be excited? It's not often that Tiger gets taken down in such a way. It was a Tiger first, for this particular situation.

For all we know, the nation of Korea may have looked
like they had when the 2002 World Cup was taking
place. Okay, maybe it wasn't exactly like that.
But you better believe that Yang was getting
his fair share of support from his home country.

Was I one of the millions of Koreans that was anticipating the final stroke of the game? Yes. Am I a consistent follower of the sport? No. Am I proud to know that a Korean is the current champion in golf? Definitely. Would I have written this article if a golfer of a different ethnic background pulled away with such an amazing finish? Don't call me a liar when I say yes. Just, this time around it was a man that is from the same country as I am. Congratulations to Y.E. Yang for an impressive performace.

-Jason C