On her hat, Grace Kim wears a pin in honour of a man she never met.
In the days, months and even years after lovable Australian professional golfer Jarrod Lyle died from cancer in 2018, his yellow Leuk The Duck symbol was one of golf’s small ways of ensuring he was never forgotten. The symbol of kids cancer charity Challenge — which Lyle relentlessly promoted as he fought his own battle — was on hats, driver covers and basically everywhere.
No one disliked Jarrod, not least because he found humour and positivity in a world which dealt him a hand no one should have to go through.
“I never got to meet him, but I’ve seen so many news articles and heard stories from other people,” says Kim, Australia’s latest golfing star after her maiden LPGA Tour win last week. “To me, I thought, ‘wow, that guy loved life and lived it to its fullest’.
“He was a good role model, a free spirit and to be able to represent him and what the duck means [is important].
“He always had a smile on his face. That has put a lot of perspective in my mind; whatever hardship I’m going through is nothing compared to what other people are going through.”
Grace Kim with her Leuk The Duck pin after her maiden LPGA Tour win.Credit: Getty
So, when 22-year-old Kim banked $445,000 for a breakthrough win in Hawaii’s Lotte Championship last week, she made sure the Leuk The Duck pin was still on her hat, long after other golfers have quietly tucked it in a safe place away from public view.
Aged just 17 when Lyle died, Kim was already earmarked for golfing success. But it came against her initial instincts as the family lived in a small townhouse in Greenacre in Sydney’s south-west.
Her Korean father Kevin wanted his daughter to be an athlete. When Grace was just 10, he introduced her to golf and thought he would see if it clicked.
“My parents obviously worked so hard to run a family,” Kim says.
“There were a lot of tough times when I was younger. From the stories I heard, it wasn’t easy.
“I started golf with my dad and I hated it for two years. I just didn’t enjoy it. I was just standing in one spot hitting ball after ball. It was boring. Who does that?”
She did.
“But here I am. I’m glad my dad pushed me. He had a bit of faith and kept pushing me in the right direction, not to the point where they’re forcing you to do it. There’s a lot of parents who do that, but my dad pushed me the appropriate amount.
“I started winning all my age groups and then I was like, ‘wow, OK. This is what it’s like’.”
Grace Kim took just three tournaments to break through on the LPGA Tour.Credit: Getty
Last week was just her third start on the LPGA Tour in her rookie season, but the Golf NSW prodigy has already secured spots in every major for the next two years courtesy of her three-way play-off victory, including the Chevron Championship in Texas being played this week (Kim shot a three-over 75 in her first round).
Soon after the win, her phone started pinging with messages. Her Pro-Am partners from the TPS Sydney event, NRL superstar James Tedesco and cricketer Dan Christian, got in touch. Then a name popped up she never thought she’d see.
“Ash Barty asked for my number and she’s messaged me,” Kim says. “I’m like, ‘what is going on?’ It’s nuts.
“I’ve been super blessed to have so many messages come through, and I’ve felt really loved and supported which is really nice. I’ve seen lots of videos of peoples’ reactions when I holed the putt. I’ve just never felt happier.”
Yet it pales in comparison to what the win means to her family, including mother Jane, who still works as a carer in an aged care facility.
“I felt really blessed to start giving back myself now, where I’m at an age I can start earning my own money and let my parents live comfortably,” Kim says. “That’s really what I want for them and I don’t want them to suffer any more. I want them to live comfortably and it’s a goal of mine.
“And I’m still me. Obviously I’ve now got this achievement on my resume, but I want to be as human as possible.”
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