Golf grew in popularity in Seoul after it held the 1988 Olympics, and now U.S. college coaches are witnessing the emergence and competitiveness of Korean golfers.
Looking back, University of Florida senior C.J. Kim considers her start in golf more than 10 years ago inevitable. Her parents played. And growing up in South Korea, many of her friends did, too.
As a member of UF’s women’s team, Kim, 23, is one of a growing number of players of Korean descent in college golf. Some are international students like Kim, who came to this country in 2001. Others are U.S.-born. All have grown up in cultures that widely embrace this popular sport.
In fact, Kim says that when she was in middle school in South Korea, she attended class only in the mornings. After lunch, she and other young golfers would work on their game until 9 p.m.
“Over there, young people aren’t encouraged to pursue both school and sports,” she says. “You pick one.”
Dr. Kyeyoung Park, an associate professor of anthropology and Asian American studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, says playing golf has historically been viewed in South Korea as a status symbol reserved for the rich. Park was born and raised there, moving to the United States in 1981 for graduate studies. Land for golf courses in South Korea is scarce because the country of 49 million people is about the size of Indiana, she says. Kim adds that an 18-hole round of golf there costs about $250 — five times the cost in the United States — unless a person has a club membership that typically runs six figures.
Korean attitudes grew more accepting of golf — and other sports — as a career when Seoul hosted the 1988 Olympics, Park says. Leading up to it, city leaders toiled to build new sport venues and modernize facilities to house athletes, journalists and tourists in a frenzied makeover that was like preparation for a head of state’s visit. “What happened in Seoul is what is now happening in Beijing,” Park says, referring to China hosting this summer’s Olympics. “Of course, people take sports more seriously after going through all that.”
