Sangmoon Bae

Bae started playing golf at age 11. However, he was more interested in baseball when he was in school and dreamed of becoming a professional baseball player. His parents, both avid golfers, coaxed him to take up golf as a career, explaining that baseball did not offer a future.
Bae has played on the Korean Tour, Japan Golf Tour, OneAsia Tour and Asian Tour. He turned down the Nationwide Tour card he earned at the 2008 and 2010 PGA Tour Q-School to play in Asia instead.
In 2007, he enjoyed his first win at the SK Telecom Open on home soil with his mother Si Ok-hee on the bag. He shot a final-day 67 and won by six strokes over Australian Aaron Baddeley and Kim Hyung-tae.
Bae continued to show that he is one of Asia's rising stars by winning his second Tour title at the Kolon-Hana Bank Korea Open in 2008. It was an impressive win as he went head-to-head with Ryder Cup stars Anthony Kim and Ian Poulter to triumph by one shot. The great year continued when he qualified for his first appearance at the Omega Mission Hills World Cup with Kim Hyung-tae after they won the Fortis International Challenge. Bae also qualified for the PGA Tour Qualifying School Final Stage after starting from the first stage, but missed out on his card after finishing 87th. He enjoyed three other top-10s to finish a career-high seventh on the Order of Merit.
The talented Korean continued his successful run by winning his third Tour title in 2009, at the GS Caltex Maekyung Open on home soil in a playoff against Ted Oh. He is rated as one of the longest hitters on the Asian Tour. Played full time on the Japan Golf Tour starting in 2010.
2010 Japan PGA Tour Summary: Tournaments entered - 11; in money - 10; top-10 finishes - 6; scoring average - 69.94 (ranked 29th); money ¥29,474,083 (ranked 29th); best finish, 5th, Sun Chlorella Classic.
2011 Japan PGA Tour Summary: Tournaments entered - 19; in money - 16; top-10 finishes - 7; scoring average - 69.86 (ranked 2nd); money ¥151,078,958 (ranked 1st); best finish, winner, Vana H Cup KBC Augusta, Coca-Cola Tokai Classic and Japan Open. At the end of the year, earned his PGA Tour card at Q-School when he finished T-11th.
2012 Notes: Lost a four-way playoff at the Transitions Championship when Luke Donald birdied the first playoff hole. Finished T-5th at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. It marked the best finish by a Korean player at the Accenture, bettering the previous mark of T-9th by K.J. Choi (2008) and Y.E. Yang (2011). Lost in the quarterfinals to Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy, 3 & 2. Finished his rookie year 83rd in the money race and 96th in the FedEx Cup race. Had two starts in Japan: T-41st at Mitsui Sumitomo VISA Taiheiyo Masters and T-31st at Dunlop Phoenix.
2013 Notes: Career-best, finishing 69th in the FedEx Cup and 51st on the money list. Won the HP Byron Nelson, joining K.J. Choi, Y.E. Yang and Kevin Na as the fourth Korean-born player to win on the PGA Tour.
2014 Notes: Did not record a top-10 on the PGA Tour but had six top-25s. Made 13 of 24 cuts and finished 122nd in the FedExCup standings and 124th on money list.
In 2015 earned his second PGA Tour victory, defeating Steven Bowditch by two strokes at the Frys.com Open. It was his first win and top-10 finish since the 2013 AT&T Byron Nelson Championship. A player of Korean descent in his 20s has won on the PGA Tour six times in the last five years, and Bae has done it twice. Also won in 2013 at age 26. Others are Kevin Na (2011), John Huh (2012), Seung-Yul Noh (2014) and Danny Lee (2015). His Frys.com Open win was the 15th on the PGA Tour at that time by a player of Korean descent.