# Pak Se-ri

Pak Se-ri or Se-ri Pak (Korean: 박세리, Korean pronunciation:; born 28 September 1977) is a South Korean former professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour from 1998 to 2016. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2007.

## Career

Born in Taejon, she attended Yusong Elementary School [ko] in that city and then Keumseong Girls’ High School [ko] in Kongju City, Chungnam Province, where she was the school's best amateur golfer. She then moved to Seoul for training. Pak turned professional in 1996, a year before she moved to the U.S. as a 20-year-old. In 1996 and 1997, she won six tournaments on the LPGA of Korea Tour. Pak joined the LPGA Tour full-time for the year 1998, crowning her rookie season with victories in two majors: the McDonald's LPGA Championship and U.S. Women's Open. At just 20 years of age, she became the youngest-ever winner of the U.S. Women's Open. About.com writes that "Pak won a 20-hole playoff for that victory, making that tournament - at 92 holes in length - the longest tournament ever in women's professional golf." Four days after the U.S. Women's Open win, Pak shot a then-LPGA record 61 during the second round of the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic. She won the Rolex Rookie of the Year award for that season.
Since 1998, she has gone on to win 21 more events on the Tour, including three more majors. In June 2007, at age 29, she qualified for the World Golf Hall of Fame, surpassing Karrie Webb as the youngest living entrant ever. (Tom Morris, Jr., who died in 1875 at the age of 24, had been elected in 1975.)
Pak has also competed in a professional men's event, at the 2003 SBS Super Tournament on the Korean Tour. The Korean Tour was a feeder tour for the Asian Tour and did not offer world ranking points. She finished 10th in the event, according to the World Golf Hall of Fame "becoming the first woman to make the cut in a professional men's tournament since Babe Zaharias did so in 1945."
At the 2005 McDonald's LPGA Championship, she missed the cut for the first time in 29 majors. In an interview quoted on the PGA Tour's website, she commented that she was searching for a balance between her golf and her personal life: "I've been a little bit unhappy about everything, my game, big game. I'm not really enjoying it at all, and I'm not doing anything with my ability. I know what I needed, a much better balance. I'm always putting a lot of pressure on myself". Eventually, she was found to have a finger injury. In 2006, she rediscovered her best form by winning the McDonald's LPGA Championship for the third time to claim her fifth major title overall.
In 2007, she won the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic for the fifth time, making her the fourth player in LPGA history to win the same tournament five or more times (Annika Sörenstam accomplished this feat at two tournaments).
Perhaps the greatest tribute to her career to date came in a column by Golf World writer Eric Adelson in 2008, who called Pak "a pioneer... who changed the face of golf even more than Tiger Woods." When Pak came to the LPGA in 1998, she was the only South Korean player. Ten years later, she was one of 45 South Koreans on tour, and the single largest source of revenue for the LPGA was the sale of TV rights in South Korea.
Pak was the only South Korean on the LPGA Tour in the year 1998. Her spectacular triumph at the 1998 U.S. Women's Open encouraged many South Korean women to take up golf as a sport. She is regarded as a leader of the game in her home country and has also inspired the new generations of LPGA players Na Yeon Choi and Inbee Park who have followed her footsteps at the LPGA level. A statue of her now stands outside Gongju's stadium. This statue commemorates her signature moment: a successful shot from a water hazard to remain tied for first place in the 1998 U.S. Women's Open; this allowed her to force a sudden death playoff which she then won with "a tremendous birdie putt from nearly 20 feet on the second hole." This was a victory named by the Korea Times as the 3rd most acclaimed moment in 60 years of South Korean sports history. Her shot was shown as the basis for the first episode of the South Korean TV drama Birdie Buddy.
On 17 March 2016, Pak announced that she would retire following the 2016 season. She retired the following 13 October, after completing the first round of South Korea's lone LPGA-sanctioned event, the LPGA KEB Hana Bank Championship.

## Professional wins (39)
### LPGA Tour (25)

* Legend
* Major championships (5)
* Other LPGA Tour (20)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
| 1 | 17 May 1998 | McDonald's LPGA Championship | 65-68-72-68=273 | −11 | 3 strokes | Donna Andrews Lisa Hackney |
| 2 | 5 Jul 1998 | U.S. Women's Open | 69-70-75-76=290 | +6 | Playoff | Jenny Chuasiriporn (a) |
| 3 | 12 Jul 1998 | Jamie Farr Kroger Classic | 71-61-63-66=261 | −23 | 9 strokes | Lisa Hackney |
| 4 | 26 Jul 1998 | Giant Eagle LPGA Classic | 65-69-67=201 | −15 | 1 stroke | Dottie Pepper |
| 5 | 20 Jun 1999 | ShopRite LPGA Classic | 63-69-66=198 | −15 | 2 strokes | Trish Johnson |
| 6 | 4 Jul 1999 | Jamie Farr Kroger Classic | 68-69-68-71=276 | −8 | Playoff | Carin Koch Kelli Kuehne Mardi Lunn Sherri Steinhauer Karrie Webb |
| 7 | 12 Sep 1999 | Samsung World Championship of Women's Golf | 67-71-70-72=280 | −8 | 1 stroke | Karrie Webb |
| 8 | 14 Nov 1999 | PageNet Championship | 66-66-74-70=276 | −12 | Playoff | Laura Davies Karrie Webb |
| 9 | 16 Jan 2001 | YourLife Vitamins LPGA Classic | 71-68-64=203 | −13 | 4 strokes | Penny Hammel Carin Koch |
| 10 | 22 Apr 2001 | Longs Drugs Challenge | 66-71-71=208 | −8 | 2 strokes | Laura Diaz |
| 11 | 8 Jul 2001 | Jamie Farr Kroger Classic | 70-62-69-68=269 | −15 | 2 strokes | Maria Hjorth |
| 12 | 5 Aug 2001 | Weetabix Women's British Open | 71-70-70-66=277 | −11 | 2 strokes | Mi Hyun Kim |
| 13 | 30 Sep 2001 | AFLAC Champions | 70-67-64-71=272 | −16 | 5 strokes | Lorie Kane |
| 14 | 7 Apr 2002 | The Office Depot Championship | 68-68-73=209 | −7 | 1 stroke | Annika Sörenstam |
| 15 | 9 Jun 2002 | McDonald's LPGA Championship | 71-70-68-70=279 | −5 | 3 strokes | Beth Daniel |
| 16 | 25 Aug 2002 | First Union Betsy King Classic | 70-68-66-63=267 | −21 | 3 strokes | Angela Stanford |
| 17 | 13 Oct 2002 | Mobile LPGA Tournament of Champions | 65-70-67-66=268 | −20 | 4 strokes | Carin Koch Catriona Matthew |
| 18 | 27 Oct 2002 | Sports Today CJ Nine Bridges Classic | 65-76-72=213 | −3 | 6 strokes | Carin Koch |
| 19 | 23 Mar 2003 | Safeway PING | 65-68-68-64=265 | −23 | 1 stroke | Grace Park |
| 20 | 27 Apr 2003 | Chick-fil-A Charity Championship | 71-65-64=200 | −16 | Playoff | Shani Waugh |
| 21 | 18 Aug 2003 | Jamie Farr Kroger Classic | 69-67-64-71=271 | −13 | 2 strokes | Marisa Baena Han Hee-won |
| 22 | 9 May 2004 | Michelob ULTRA Open at Kingsmill | 70-71-69-65=275 | −9 | 2 strokes | Juli Inkster Lorena Ochoa |
| 23 | 11 Jun 2006 | McDonald's LPGA Championship | 71-69-71-69=280 | −8 | Playoff | Karrie Webb |
| 24 | 15 Jul 2007 | Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic | 63-68-69-67=267 | −17 | 3 strokes | Morgan Pressel |
| 25 | 16 May 2010 | Bell Micro LPGA Classic | 69-66-68=203 | −13 | Playoff | Brittany Lincicome Suzann Pettersen |
LPGA Tour playoff record (6–0)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
| 1 | 1998 | U.S. Women's Open | Jenny Chuasiriporn (a) | Won with birdie on second extra hole after 18-hole playoff (Chuasiriporn:73, Pak:73) |
| 2 | 1999 | Jamie Farr Kroger Classic | Carin Koch Kelli Kuehne Mardi Lunn Sherri Steinhauer Karrie Webb | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
| 3 | 1999 | PageNet Championship | Laura Davies Karrie Webb | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
| 4 | 2003 | Chick-fil-A Charity Championship | Shani Waugh | Won with par on fourth extra hole |
| 5 | 2006 | McDonald's LPGA Championship | Karrie Webb | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
| 6 | 2010 | Bell Micro LPGA Classic | Brittany Lincicome Suzann Pettersen | Won with birdie on third extra hole Pettersen eliminated by par on second hole |

### LPGA of Korea Tour (14)

| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
| 1 | 26 Sep 1992 | Lyle and Scott Women's Open (as an amateur) | 71-72=143 | −1 | Playoff | Won Jae-sook |
| 2 | 1 May 1993 | Tomboy Women's Open (as an amateur) | 76-71-72=219 | +3 | Playoff | Kim Soon-mi |
| 3 | 29 Apr 1995 | Tomboy Women's Open (as an amateur) | 76-71-68=215 | −1 | 3 strokes | Kim Soon-mi Lee O-soon |
| 4 | 17 Jun 1995 | Midopa Women's Open (as an amateur) | 72-68-68=209 | −7 | 4 strokes | Lee O-soon |
| 5 | 24 Jun 1995 | Christian Dior Women's Open (as an amateur) | 65-67-67=200 | −16 | 10 strokes | Lee O-soon |
| 6 | 8 Oct 1995 | Seoul Women's Open (as an amateur) | 69-73-72=214 | −2 | 2 strokes | Ku Ok-hee |
| 7 | 24 Aug 1996 | Dongil Renown Ladies Classic | 65-74-70=209 | −7 | 1 strokes | Song Chae-eun |
| 8 | 1 Sep 1996 | FILA Women's Open | 70-67-69=206 | −10 | 4 strokes | Bu Hyeong-soon |
| 9 | 8 Sep 1996 | Diadora Cup SBS Professional Golf Challenge | 77-73-77-74=301 | +13 | 1 stroke | Song Chae-eun |
| 10 | 6 Oct 1996 | Hanwha Cup Seoul Women's Open | 68-71-71=210 | −6 | Playoff | Chung Il-mi |
| 11 | 28 Sep 1997 | Cheil Industries Rose Women's Open | 68-69-73=210 | −6 | Playoff | Chung Il-mi |
| 12 | 5 Oct 1997 | Hanwha Cup Seoul Women's Open | 71-68-68=207 | −9 | 9 strokes | Park Hyun-soon Mi-Hyun Kim |
| 13 | 18 May 2003 | MBC-Xcanvas Women's Open | 69-65-70=204 | −12 | 3 strokes | Ji Eun-hee (amateur) |
| 14 | 23 Sep 2012 | KDB Daewoo Securities Classic | 69-66-65=200 | −16 | 3 strokes | Heo Yoon-kyung |

## Major championships
### Wins (5)

| Year | Championship | Winning score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
| 1998 | McDonald's LPGA Championship | 65-68-72-68=273 | −11 | 3 strokes | Donna Andrews, Lisa Hackney |
| 1998 | U.S. Women's Open | 69-70-75-76=290 | +6 | Playoff $^1$ | Jenny Chuasiriporn (a) |
| 2001 | Weetabix Women's British Open | 71-70-70-66=277 | −11 | 2 strokes | Mi Hyun Kim |
| 2002 | McDonald's LPGA Championship | 71-70-68-70=279 | −5 | 3 strokes | Beth Daniel |
| 2006 | McDonald's LPGA Championship | 71-69-71-69=280 | −8 | Playoff $^2$ | Karrie Webb |
$^1$ Defeated Chuasiriporn on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff, after an 18-hole playoff round
$^2$ Defeated Webb on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff

### Results timeline

Results not in chronological order before 2015.
| Tournament | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 |
| ANA Inspiration | | | T13 | T15 |
| Women's PGA Championship | | 1 | T6 | T3 |
| U.S. Women's Open | T21 | 1 | T14 | T15 |
| du Maurier Classic | | T41 | T13 | T7 |
| Tournament | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
| ANA Inspiration | T11 | T9 | T15 | T16 | T27 | T45 | T10 | T10 | T40 |
| Women's PGA Championship | T39 | 1 | T46 | T17 | CUT | 1 | T33 | T46 | T65 |
| U.S. Women's Open | 2 | 5 | 50 | T32 | T45 | T3 | T4 | CUT | CUT |
| Women's British Open ^ | 1 | T11 | 2 | T21 | WD | WD | T5 | CUT | T20 |
| Tournament | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 |
| ANA Inspiration | T15 | T10 | T8 | T19 | T4 | CUT | |
| Women's PGA Championship | CUT | T34 | T19 | T28 | | WD | WD |
| U.S. Women's Open | CUT | T45 | T9 | CUT | T38 | | CUT |
| Women's British Open | | T14 | | T47 | WD | | |
| The Evian Championship ^^ | | | | T4 | T47 | | |
^ The Women's British Open replaced the du Maurier Classic as an LPGA major in 2001 ^^ The Evian Championship was added as a major in 2013
CUT = missed the half-way cut WD = withdrew "T" = tied for place

### Summary

| Tournament | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top-5 | Top-10 | Top-25 | Events | Cuts made |
| ANA Inspiration | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 13 | 17 | 16 |
| Women's PGA Championship | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 18 | 14 |
| U.S. Women's Open | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 19 | 14 |
| Women's British Open | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 12 | 8 |
| The Evian Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| du Maurier Classic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Totals | 5 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 22 | 39 | 71 | 57 |
* Most consecutive cuts made – 29 (1997 U.S. Open – 2005 Kraft Nabisco)
* Longest streak of top-10s – 5 (2001 U.S. Open – 2002 U.S. Open)

## LPGA Tour career summary

| Year | Tournaments played | Cuts made | Wins | 2nd | 3rd | Top 10s | Best finish | Earnings ($) | Money list rank | Scoring average | Scoring rank |
| 1998 | 27 | 26 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 872,170 | 2 | 71.41 | 13 |
| 1999 | 27 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 956,926 | 3 | 70.77 | 8 |
| 2000 | 23 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 550,376 | 12 | 72.49 | 10 |
| 2001 | 21 | 20 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 12 | 1 | 1,623,009 | 2 | 69.69 | 2 |
| 2002 | 24 | 24 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 17 | 1 | 1,722,281 | 2 | 69.85 | 2 |
| 2003 | 26 | 25 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 1,611,928 | 2 | 70.03 | 1 |
| 2004 | 19 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 682,669 | 11 | 71.34 | 27 |
| 2005 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T27 | 62,628 | 102 | 74.21 | 116 |
| 2006 | 23 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 884,961 | 13 | 71.65 | 23 |
| 2007 | 23 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 820,129 | 16 | 71.74 | 14 |
| 2008 | 17 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 366,143 | 52 | 72.59 | 66 |
| 2009 | 24 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 447,683 | 30 | 71.98 | 37 |
| 2010 | 15 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 368,839 | 32 | 72.45 | 49 |
| 2011 | 20 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 415,447 | 27 | 71.97 | 26 |
| 2012 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 430,338 | 33 | 71.18 | 16 |
| 2013 | 18 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | T4 | 440,162 | 34 | 71.88 | 41 |
| 2014 | 16 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | T4 | 271,888 | 59 | 71.75 | 45 |
| 2015 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | T10 | 36,083 | 122 | 74.25 | n/a |
| 2016 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T27 | 20,053 | 150 | 69.54 | 95 |
* official through 2016 season

## World ranking

Position in Women's World Golf Rankings at the end of each calendar year.
| Year | World ranking |
| 2006 | 12 |
| 2007 | 10 |
| 2008 | 31 |
| 2009 | 43 |
| 2010 | 32 |
| 2011 | 36 |
| 2012 | 26 |
| 2013 | 30 |
| 2014 | 59 |
| 2015 | 228 |
| 2016 | 469 |

## Team appearances

Amateur
* Espirito Santo Trophy (representing South Korea): 1994
Professional
* Lexus Cup (representing Asia team): 2006 (winners), 2007 (winners), 2008

## Filmography
### Television shows

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2017–2018 | Law of the Jungle in Cook Islands | Cast member | Episode 293–298 |
| 2018 | Soo Mi's Side Dishes | Regular member | Episode 93–99; Guest (Episode 32) |
| 2020–2022 | Sporty Sisters | Regular member | Season 1–2 |
| 2020 | Law of the Jungle in Wild Korea | Cast member | Episode 416–419 |
| 2020 | Law of the Jungle – Zero Point | Cast member | Episode 423–426 |
| 2021 | Match of the Century: AI vs. Human | Regular member | |
| 2021 | Wild Wild Quiz | Cast member | Episode 1–12 |
| 2021 | Three Park: The Second Heart | Main host | |
| 2021 | Ceremony Club | Main cast | |
| 2022 | Operation Time | Host | |
| 2022 | Tomorrow is a Hero-Kanbu | Host | |
| 2022 | IT Live from Today | Host | |
| 2022 | Sports Golden Bell | contestant | Chuseok Special |
| 2023 | The Queen | Host | with Leeteuk and Jang Sung-kyu |
| 2023–present | Dogs Are Incredible | Host | |

### Web shows

| Year | Title | Role | Ref. |
| 2021–present | Cerizabeth | Host | |

## Awards and nominations

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee / Work | Result | Ref. |
| Brand of the Year Awards | 2022 | Spotiner | Pak Se-ri | Won | |
| Brand Customer Loyalty Award | 2022 | Spoiler division | Pak Se-ri | Won | |