There are many golfers who have attempted to play professional golf even after turning 50. Juli Inkster, for example, is 65 and has recently played The Standard Portland Classic 2025. Similarly, there are golfers like Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods on the PGA Tour who continue to play the game they love, irrespective of their age. However, the LPGA star Eun-Hee Ji announced her retirement at the young age of 39, after playing around 19 years on the tour. This move stunned the golf world, including golfers like Sei Young Kim.

Kim was asked about this during a press conference at the 2025 BMW Ladies Championship. The reporter asked, “Eun-Hee Ji made her official retirement today. What has she meant to you for your career? Have you talked about her retirement, for example?”

Kim was quick to reply, “Well, I just found out that news from all of you that she made the retirement announcement. I thought I was close to her, but maybe I wasn’t. Maybe I have to talk to her again.”

Eun-Hee Ji made the announcement through an Instagram post. She wrote the caption in Korean, which roughly translates to say that she has made many moments during her 19 years on the tour. At the BMW Ladies Championship, she got a special opportunity to play the last game in front of her home crowd. She then thanked all the fans and announced her retirement after the ongoing tournament.

The announcement came as a shock to Kim, who thought Eun-Hee Ji had some more years of good golf waiting for her. “I thought she was going to continue for a while because she’s such a talented player. I mean, Eun-Hee has been always a good senior player for us. She always acted as intermediator when I always had a quibble with Hyo Joo and Hye-Jin. But yes, I have to talk to her,” Kim said.

There are no popular public instances of any difference between Sei Young Kim and Kim Hyo Joo, or Choi Hye-Jin. However, the former has hinted that Eun-Hee Ji used to act as an intermediary during any problems among South Korean golfers. Hyo Joo did hint at the personality difference between herself and Kim. During the ongoing BMW Ladies Championship, the two were grouped together alongside Lindy Duncan for one of their rounds. Talking to the media, Hyo Joo said, “I tend to be more laid-back, and she is always locked in on every shot. So she runs away from me sometimes. But we’ve often played well when we played in the same group. I think we will have another good round tomorrow.”

All four South Korean golfers are playing the BMW Ladies Championship. Sei Young Kim is leading after Round 3. She fired an impressive 62-66-69 to finish the third round at 19 under par. Following her is Hyo Joo, who stands at T14 with a score of 9 under par. Two strokes behind her is Choi Hye-Kim, who scored 68-66-75 to finish at 7 under par, 209, after the third round. Eun-Hee Ji, who is playing her last tournament before retirement, is at T49.

Sei Young Kim will be looking to end her title drought with a win at the 2025 BMW Ladies Championship.

Sei Young Kim’s title drought

The last title Sei Young Kim won on the LPGA Tour was in 2020. She won two back-to-back contests, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the Pelican Women’s Championship. Ironically, her scores were also the same in both events: 14 under par 266. But that was the last time she held an LPGA Tour trophy in her hands.

She played in 20 events in 2021, 20 in 2022, 22 in 2023, 24 in 2024, and 18 in 2025 so far. However, she didn’t win any of these tournaments. Of the 104 events she played from 2021 until now, she made it to the top 10 23 times. This has been the most impressive season since the start of the title drought. In 18 starts until now, she made the cut in 14 of them and made it to the top 10 7 times. The closest she came to the title win this season was at the ShopRite LPGA Classic and the FM Championship. She finished 3rd in both of these tournaments.

The BMW Ladies Championship offers her an opportunity to end this title drought. She currently leads the leaderboard with a 19-under-par score. She sits 4 strokes ahead of Yealimi Noh and Nasa Hataoka, who are tied at 2.

Eun-Hee Ji’s retirement closes a remarkable chapter in women’s golf, leaving behind a legacy of skill, resilience, and unforgettable moments. As she steps away from competition, her influence and inspiration will continue to resonate with fans and fellow players like Sei Young Kim.