Photo = AFP Yonhap News
Professional golfer caddy Dean Hurden (58, left) is the leading contributor to Jeon In-ji (28, right) winning the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, a major event on the LPGA Tour in the United States. Hurden, who has more than 30 years of experience as a professional caddy, such as carrying Jin-young Ko (27)’s bag earlier, assisted her ex-cognition in this competition.
In a phone call with a reporter on the 28th, Hurden confessed, “I almost mightn’t compete.” It was said that the shooting occurred on the 23rd, the day before the opening day, at the ‘Red Roof Inn’ motel where he stayed during the competition. This motel is a 20-minute drive from Congressional CC in Bethesda, Maryland, where the competition was held. “In many ways, I had an unforgettable week in my life,” he said.
This motel is a ‘2 star’ accommodation. With a one-week stay of $550 (regarding 700,000 won), this place was recommended by Hurden to his fellow caddies because of the cheap and well-equipped facilities. According to local media, the incident was so terrifying that a special crime task force was dispatched. The two arrested suspects aimed at the victim and pulled the trigger several times, and the victim died on the spot. Most of the caddies I stayed with heard the gunshots, but Hurden said, “I was too tired to hear the gunshots, and I only found out regarding the incident the next morning.”
Most of the caddies left to find a new place to stay, but Hudden stayed there until the end of the tournament. He said, “(The night of the incident) was a dangerous area, but since then it has become the safest place,” he said, “because the police were guarding the motel every day.”
Hurden said he was at the scene of the horrific incident, but did nothing as a caddy. Thanks to this, Jeon In-ji drove an 8-under par in the first round and won the championship with a final total of 5 under-par 283. It is the first time in three years and eight months since the KEB Hana Bank Championship in October 2018 that Jeon In-ji won the LPGA Tour event. In an interview following winning the championship, In-Jeon Jeon said, “In this competition, caddy Hurden called the remaining distances and other numbers correctly, so I was able to win.”
Reporter Hee-chan Cho etwoods@hankyung.com
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