Park In-bee has become the first South Korean to earn the LPGA Tour’s Player of the Year.

Park won the award with a fourth-place finish at 11-under par 277 at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in Guadalajara, Mexico, Sunday. She fended off her closest rival, Norwegian Suzann Pettersen, who placed fifth, 1 stroke behind Park.

Park led Petteren 290-252 in points before the tournament. Park added seven points and Pettersen six points after the event. Park has secured the most prestigious honor bestowed on a female professional golfer, regardless of the results of the season-closing CME Group Titleholders in Naples, Florida, this week.

The top honor is a points-based award, with points accumulated throughout each LPGA season. Points are awarded for wins and top 10 finishes. Winners get 30 points and runners-up 12 points. Points are doubled in majors.

The award has been given annually since 1966 by the LPGA Tour.

Before this season, Koreans had won the LPGA Tour’s Rookie of the Year Award and the Vare Trophy, which is given for the lowest scoring average, but not the Player of the Year honor.

The honor is the crown jewel for the 25-year-old Seoul native, who won six tournaments including three consecutive majors this season. She is only the fourth LPGA Tour player to win three majors in a calendar year and also the youngest player to win the U.S. Women’s Open.

“We’ve had so many great Korean players on the LPGA Tour, and I found it strange that we’ve never had a Player of the Year,” Park said in an interview with Yonhap News. “It’s an honor to have done something significant for Korean golf. I am sure the younger generation of golfers will be motivated and inspired to reach greater heights.”

Currently, Park is the money leader with $2.393 million after the Ochoa Invitational. Pettersen is in second, about $110,000 behind her. The $2 million Titleholders offers $700,000 for the winner.

Their rankings may change after the season-ending event. But she is not too focused on the money title.

“I already won the money title last year, so it’s okay even if I don’t win this year,” she said. “Every title that comes after the Player of the Year will be a bonus to me.”

“Looking back, I had few crises in the season. I am 200 percent satisfied.”

By Chun Sung-woo

(swchun@heraldcorp.com)