After 13 seasons on the LPGA Tour, including a pair of major victories, South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu announced Thursday she will retire from professional golf next month.
Ryu made her announcement in a social media post.
“After deciding to retire, I spent much time looking back on my career,” Ryu wrote in a note posted to Instagram. “So many memories came flooding back, and I felt so many emotions. But the more I thought about it, the more I was thankful for so many things.
“I am so grateful that I could do what I loved to do, day in and day out, and even make a career out of it. I am not going to lie; I had some hard patches, but despite some of the challenges, I truly enjoyed it all.”
Ryu said her final event will be The Chevron Championship from April 18-21 at The Woodlands, Texas.
At the 2011 U.S. Women’s Open, Ryu defeated Hee Kyung Seo in a three-hole aggregate playoff to win her first major title before joining the LPGA in 2012 and being named rookie of the year. She finished in the top five at the U.S. Women’s Open six times from 2011-19.
Ryu’s second major came at the 2017 ANA Inspiration at Mission Hills, Calif., by defeating Lexi Thompson in another playoff. She has six LPGA Tour wins and won 10 times on the Korean LPGA Tour.
Ryu was ranked No. 1 in the world for 19 weeks in 2017, while winning LPGA Player of the Year honors that season.
–Field Level Media