“I’ll show you why it’s Kim Ga-young.”
It was in June, just before the opening of the new season of Pro-Danggu. “We will confirm why you have maintained the best position for over 20 years,” said Kim Ga-young (41) of Hana Card, expressing her commitment to the new season like “Danggu Empress.” Her confidence paid off with “new history.” She stood tall as the player who rose to the top the most in both men and women of Pro-Danggu.
Kim Ga-young beat Han Ji-eun (23, SY) 4-3 after a three-hour bloody battle in the final round of the Crown Haitai LPBA Championship at PBA Stadium in KINTEX, Goyang, on the 17th. It is her second consecutive victory this season after the SY Bazar Hanoi Open in Hanoi, Vietnam, last month, and her ninth career victory in professional baseball.
She has written a new history in professional baseball. Her previous record was eight by legendary Belgian golfer Frederik Kudlong. However, Kim Ga-young was on par with Kudlong by winning the title last month, and became the first female player to surpass Kudlong by winning the title. She became the first female player to receive more than 400 million won (421.8 million won) in combined prize money.
Kim Ga-young, who became the world’s first pocketball world champion after entering billiards in 1996, achieved the world’s first women’s pocketball grand slam, transformed into a three-cushion player with the launch of professional billiards in 2019. He won his first championship in his sixth tournament in his first season, but after fully adjusting, he established his position as the “strongest” in the third cushion.
Despite the increasingly fierce competition with the influx of young players and the birth of new strong players every season, the “Danggu Empress” did not falter. It achieved two wins in a season for the first time in the 2021-22 season, and has continued to win more than two wins in a season for four consecutive seasons until this season.
The final result of the day, which marked a new chapter in professional baseball history, was also “Kim Ga-young.” The journey to the top was not easy. Her opponent was Han Ji-eun, who had been on a formidable ascent since her debut last season. She was also a player Kim Ga-young picked as a target ahead of the opening of the season. In fact, Han Ji-eun made bold shots on the day, pushing Kim Ga-young to a corner. She once had the champion’s point in the sixth set.
Kim Ga-young, however, was unwavering. When Han lost her chance, she immediately launched a counterattack. She was pushed back to 3-7 in the doomed seventh set, but Han did not miss the opportunity to turn the game around. After hitting her shot to the final one, Kim Ga-young enjoyed the moment by holding the cue stand aloft with her eyes closed as if she had sensed the victory.
Kim Ga-young said after the match, “I feel really good because I achieved a record that no one else could write. In fact, I never thought that I would be able to get ahead of myself by turning into a three-cushion player. I am trying harder not to be a senior player who is not ashamed in all aspects, and not to be eliminated as an active player.” 메이저놀이터