Jiyai Shin is still competing at the elite level in her 22nd professional season, setting an active benchmark for longevity in Korean women’s golf.
After competing on tours in South Korea, the United States and Japan, Shin has become a leading example of how a professional golfer can remain competitive for more than two decades.
Speaking with The Korea Daily on June 4 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California, during the 81st U.S. Women’s Open, Shin reflected on her long career and the changing faces around her.
“It feels like the number of my friends is gradually decreasing,” Shin said.
Players from her generation, including Inbee Park, Na Yeon Choi, So Yeon Ryu and Ha Neul Kim, have left competitive golf one after another. Meanwhile, younger players now make up an increasingly large share of the field.
But Shin said her longevity has brought not only loneliness but also a stronger sense of responsibility.
“The longer I continue to play well, the more younger players may be able to set longer-term goals for themselves,” she said. “I now feel a greater responsibility toward golf.”
One of the most important messages Shin wants to share with younger golfers is the value of competing overseas.
She recalled a time when nearly 40 Korean players participated in the U.S. Women’s Open and said she hopes more young golfers will challenge themselves on the American and Japanese tours.
“Even after practicing for only a few days in the United States, it feels as though your golf improves,” Shin said. “You have to keep testing yourself to understand where you stand. Only then can you try to overcome your limitations.”
Shin emphasized international experience because of the wide variety of course conditions outside South Korea.
Although the Korean tour has grown significantly in size and popularity, she said many of its courses share relatively similar characteristics.
Courses in the United States and Japan, however, offer greater differences in grass, climate, terrain and conditions around the greens.
“Many golf courses in Korea have similar characteristics,” Shin said. “In the United States and Japan, the grass is different and the environments are extremely diverse. Players need those experiences to expand their skills.”
Even the same short-game shot can require a different approach depending on the direction of the grass, the thickness of the rough, the slope of the green and the firmness of the playing surface.
A player must decide whether to hit the ball high, run it along the ground or apply spin. That decision-making ability can directly affect the score.
Shin believes exposure to those different environments gives players a wider range of technical options.
Differences in playing styles can also provide valuable motivation.
“Instead of always seeing the same players in Korea, you can go abroad, watch a variety of golfers, learn from them and also show what you can do,” Shin said. “There are more opportunities for that kind of stimulation in the United States and Japan.”
When asked how she has remained competitive for 22 years, Shin did not point to a single rule or fixed principle.
Instead, she emphasized the importance of understanding oneself.
Course management, she said, is not based on one formula. It must change according to a player’s physical condition, ball flight and feel for the shots on a particular day.
“I do not think there is one principle that I always follow,” Shin said. “You have to adjust based on your condition at the time. You need to understand yourself well to manage a course effectively.”
“You have to assess yourself first,” she added. “Then, wherever you go, you can make a plan based on what you are capable of doing in your current condition.”
Shin expressed a similar view about routines.
Rather than presenting one specific method as the answer, she said every golfer must find an approach that works individually.
“Everyone probably has a routine of their own,” Shin said. “Players have to keep challenging themselves and studying their own game.”
Shin is now one victory away from reaching 30 career titles on the Japan Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour.
Despite being on the verge of a major milestone, she has not set an overly ambitious goal for the season.
“Instead of looking too far ahead, I have always tried to do my best with what is directly in front of me, and that is how I have come this far,” Shin said. “I will continue working toward each immediate goal, one at a time.”
