"Y ou don't know what it feels like," said Cheon Woo-sung, a freshman, majoring in English. "Tingling when you has at least a share of the 10-hole lead, it is beyond imagination. I think that it is fascination of golf, and it captured me totally." He smiled, showing "putting" as his skill. "Try it, try it, and more try it until perfection."
Most of his childhood, he has lived in other countries. He lived in France for 3 years and a half, and in America for 6 and a half. Because his father is working for Daewoo Heavy Industries & Machinery Ltd. as a supervisor of Europe Division, after he majored in French at HUFS. His father went on a business trip to France and America with his family. That's why he has lived abroad. Since he had visited golf courses with his father, his passion for golf hasn't been stopped. The passion was getting greater and greater, and he is gotten wrapped up in golf. "I felt it. That's it." He decided to be a golfer. His age was 16, a high school student.
"Of course, there were some difficulties. My parents felt sorry for me since they wanted me to study hard, not to play golf." He added vigorously. "But I was confident, desired heartily, so I presented conspicuous reasons why I should play golf. And guess what?" He continued eagerly. "They trusted me and respected my opinion. Since then, they were to be reliable supporters." He smiled brightly. They couldn't stop him from his ardent passion. The inspiration comes from Tiger Woods, the king of golf, who has won in many championship tournaments. "I'd like to set that same presence over here that Tiger Woods did and have lots of wins," Woo-sung said sincerely. Surely He has a tremendous talent. In 2002, he won a prize on the national Korea Golf Management (KGM) contest, one of the big-five golf tournaments in Korea. He recorded as the 21st player among 1500 participants. It carried him to be on the "partial exempt of special consumption tax" list. He won twice among 3 participations in 2002. Also on the last Busan Asian Games, he was active as a golf interpreter; it is so-called "superior interpreter" who helps the VIP of different countries. And he has interpreted two golf contests, including "Queen Sirikit Cup" which was hosted by the queen of Thailand. He was active as a special interpreter of Korea Golf Association (KGA) this year.
But there were also bitter times behind splendor. Regretfully, he was defeated by a narrow margin at the Professional Qualifying test (Q-school). The tournament is held only once a year, and it is the most important one that makes an amateur to a pro. "I felt so miserable, and tears came to my eyes. And honestly, I wanted to cry." He expressed his feeling somewhat bitterly. "But I am going to win a prize at the Q-school in March, at any cost." He stressed. "No pain, no gain."
His dream is to play an influential role in the golf industry. "I want to be a professional golfer like Tiger Woods, I also want to be a golf commentator or an expert, whatever concerned with golf." Pointing out the actual circumstances in, he added, "Many people think that golf is for the rich. That's because, the costs to learn golf is very heavy; fees of one round at a golf course reaches to approximately 200,000 won or even more." He added, "I think the range of 'partial exempt of special consumption tax' should be extended and more foundations should be established for junior golfers." He also pointed out the way of golf training in schools. "The way of golf training in Korea, is a problem; it is not confined to golf. It applies to every sport. Coaches in Korea force players only to play sports without attending classes. And it resulted in lack of common sense and manner. As you see, in other countries like France or America, all players attend classes as well as practice the sports they play. Even Woods attended school classes." He doesn't waste any time, but does his best to make his dream be real. He practices whenever he has spare time to compensate for lack of practicing, caused by attending college. It might not be long before Woo-sung wins a prize on the Q-school.