Who is 16-yo Kris Kim's mother? All you need to know about LPGA’s Ji-Hyun Suh

Ji-Hyun Suh must be a proud mom. Her son Kris Kim, a 16-year-old, would be teeing off at the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson and making his PGA Tour debut. Kim has been granted a sponsor exemption to the tournament, which is scheduled from May 2 to 5 in TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas.

Ji-Hyun Suh, herself competed in the LPGA Tour in the 1990s. Suh introduced golf to Kim when he was just five years old. Talking about his introduction to golf, Kim said (via PGA Tour):

"(I) always used to watch her, and then ended up falling in love with it myself."

Suh now serves as Kim's swing coach. Ji-Hyun Suh is originally from Seoul, but now lives in Surrey, England, with her husband and son.

In an interview with LET Access, Suh said that she started playing golf at the age of 13. She had an interest in tennis but wasn't allowed to play the sport by her father as he didn't want her to "run around".

Ji-Hyun Suh is the youngest of her four sisters and started playing golf in Seoul. Suh further said (via LET Access):

"My father would take me at five in the morning and I would hit balls all day and my hands would hurt. I didn’t like it very much, but my father did. So I continued practising from the age of 13 and I became very good."

Ji-Hyun Suh turned professional in 1998 and decided to play in America. Suh was successful in getting a conditional card in the United States and played in the country for two years. However, she faced problems because of the language barrier as she didn't know English very well then.

Despite the struggles, Ji-Hyun Suh secured two T-15 finishes in the LPGA at the Friendly’s Classic and Giant Eagle LPGA Classic in the 1998 season.

Suh also had to travel alone unlike other country women who used to travel with their parents. Suh's father had a business in Korea while her mother was a housewife and couldn't travel alongside her.

She said that she didn't particularly enjoy playing then because of the pressure of always making money for next tournament. She further said (via LET Access):

"I did not have any sponsors in America and returned to Korea, where a friend told me about the tour in Japan. I earned an exempt card in Japan and played on the tour. I really enjoyed it more than America because I travelled with friends and after one year I met my husband."

She quit playing golf in 2002. Soon, Ji-Hyun Suh and her husband moved to UK, where she took up golf teaching at both a driving range and a golf course located in Surrey. She did make a brief return to golf after 12 years in the OCA Augas Santas International Ladies Open.

Some of the tournaments she participated in 2002 with her ranking and prize money are as follows (via JLPGA):

• Nichirei Cup World Ladies: 24T - ¥516,000
• Kosaido Ladies Golf Cup: Missed Cut - ¥0
• Daikin Orchid Ladies Golf Tournament: Missed Cut - ¥0
• We Love KOBE Suntory Ladies Open: Missed Cut - ¥0
• VERNAL Cup: 33T - ¥142,500
• GEORGIA Cup: 25T - ¥78,000
• SANKYO Ladies Cup: 2 - ¥1,320,000

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A look at Ji-Hyun Suh's son Kris Kim's amateur career so far

Ji-Hyun Suh's son Kris Kim has had a splendid amateur career so far. He has won several tournaments last year including the Boys' Amateur Championship and the European Boys’ Individual Championship. Kris Kim has also won the Gregor Trophy.

Regarding his appearance at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, Kim said (via PGA Tour):

"My first aim is to make the cut and then see what happens. At the end of the day, I’m one of 144 competitors and we’ve all got a chance."

Some of Kris Kim's best performances are as follows:

• 2024 European Nations Cup - Copa Sotogrande: 51
• 2024 Junior Invitational at Sage Valley: 15
• 2024 Spanish Amateur Copa S M El Rey: 54
• 2024 Portuguese Internacional Amateur Championship: 28
• 2024 The Avondale Amateur: 15
• 2024 Australian Men's Amateur Championship: 21
• 2024 Australian Master of the Amateurs: 7
• 2023 The Junior PLAYERS Championship presented by Rolex: 40
• 2023 R&A Boys Amateur Championship: 1
• 2023 European Young Masters: 8
• 2023 English Boys' Under 16 Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship (McGregor Trophy): 1
• 2023 English Under 18 Amateur Stroke Play Championship: 39
• 2023 The Amateur Championship: 65
• 2023 German Boys Open: 6
• 2023 English Men's Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship (Brabazon Trophy): 20

Kris Kim will be teeing off at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson at 10:02 a.m. EDT with Max Greyserman and Norman Xiong.