Eun-Hee Ji enjoyed one of the most exciting victories on Tour in 2018. Not only did she make an ace during the final round of the Kia Classic to win a car, but the hole-in-one also lifted her to her to a fourth career victory on Tour and a second car to take home. The ace was the eighth of the career, but the first time she won a car. Last week, Ji’s Kia Sorento and Kia Stinger were delivered to her home in Miami where the Korean posted a photo sandwiched between her two new cars on Instagram.
“I’m so pumped driving around in both cars because it’s a reminder of my win and my hole-in-one!” Ji said.
While Ji got off to a hot start last season with her victory in March, she struggled to maintain that momentum through the remainder of 2018. She added three more top 10s by May but failed to crack the top 10 the remainder of the year. During the off-season, which she spent at home in Korea, she took a hard look back at her year. She made changes to her swing and focused more time on her short game. In 2018, Ji was ranked 41st on Tour in putting average and 111th in sand saves.
“Working on my game is important, but working on my short game has taken up more importance in my training,” Ji said.
Next week, she’ll get her first chance to put those changes into play when she makes the four-hour drive from Miami to Central Florida for the season-opening Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. Her thrilling victory at the Kia Classic earned her one of the limited spots in the field, which is reserved for winners of the 2017 and 2018 LPGA Tour seasons.
“I’ve never had experience with the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions format, so I’m up for a new experience,” Ji said about the opportunity to play alongside celebrities at the inaugural event.
Ji is driven to excel in not only the season opener, but in the year ahead as the 2009 U.S. Women’s Open champion has set big goals for the New Year.
“My goal for the 2019 season is to lead the money list, but first it’s my goal to win a major.”
Whatever Ji sets out to achieve, it will be exciting to watch.
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