(Asiad) Teen golfer seeks further growth after coming up short of medal

KASUGAI, Japan, Oct. 3 (Yonhap) -- After falling short of delivering a medal for South Korea in women's golf at the Asian Games on Saturday, teen prospect Yang Yun-seo said the experience will only help her grow.

Yang was one of three amateurs to represent South Korea in the women's tournament at the Aichi-Nagoya Asiad, and finished with the best score on the team at seven-under 273, seven strokes out of the bronze medal position in fourth place.

In the team standings, where the two best scores in each round were added, South Korea finished fourth at seven-under, three back of Chinese Taipei.

"It was an honor to be one of three players to represent the country and I think having competed with players from other countries will help me for the rest of my career," Yang said after signing her scorecard at Kasugai Country Club East Course in Kasugai, just northeast of the main host city of Nagoya. "I know I will get to play overseas quite a bit in the future, and to have this kind of experience so early in my career can only be beneficial."

The 18-year-old said she will turn pro soon and will try to win a spot on the Korea LPGA Tour for next season.

Her two teammates, fellow teenagers Park Seo-jin and Kim Gyu-been, struggled over the final two rounds and ended well out of medal contention, at three-over and nine-over, respectively.

It was up to Yang to push South Korea back into medal position in the team competition, where the two best scores in each round for the teams were added.

By the time Yang birdied the 16th hole, South Korea was two back of Chinese Taipei. But South Korea's medal hopes died when Yang finished par-bogey over the final two holes.

"I knew I was the only one of the team still on the course and we were two back. I wanted to make something happen on the 17th and 18th holes," Yang said. "But those are difficult holes, too, so I knew I had to be careful. But I pulled my second shot on the 18th and ended up with that bogey."

Yang said she had some difficulty playing on soft greens and fairways during the first round, which took place soon after the course received heavy downpours.

"At least I made some adjustments during the final round, but it just didn't happen fast enough," Yang added.

Yang said she would love a chance to play at the Olympics down the road.

"I think it is a dream for athletes in any sport to play at an Olympic Games," she said. "I want to become a consistent golfer, someone who has a long and successful career."