In Gee Chun v Ha Na Jang: A Curious Situation

In Gee Chun and Ha Na Jang are involved in a curiously acrimonious exchange of words.

In Gee Chun withdrew from the HSBC Women’s Champions after she sustained an injury to her back. That was the initial report. Then things began to get a bit more complicated.

Chun, 2015 US Women’s Open Champion, received the injury from a whack to her backside by Ha Na Jang’s golf bag. The 15-pounder apparently slipped from Jang’s father’s hand as he watched his daughter tie her shoelace and came crashing down an escalator at the Singapore Changi airport and into In Gee Chun.

The end result: Injured Chun was unable to compete in Singapore. Jang went on to tee it up at the Sentosa Golf Club and capture her 2nd 2016 victory with a stunning 19-under par.

It was a sweet win for Ha Na Jang. She rocketed up to 5th place in the Rolex Rankings, just below Inbee Park among the Korean players and nicely positioned to make the Korean Olympic team.

In Gee Chun, on the other hand, dropped down to 8th in the rankings, below Amy Yang and Sei Young Kim and one spot outside the top 4 players who would qualify for the Korean Olympic team if the selections were made today.

Is all this relevant to Chun’s injury? Probably not, but there’s a bit of consternation surrounding the injury.

Although Jang’s father is reported to have apologized for the incident at the time it occurred – at the airport – Chun is saying otherwise on her fan website.

"“Neither myself nor my parents have received the apology that they claim to have made,” she said. “But their explanation is enough to dissolve any hard feelings. They must have done that because they thought they did something wrong.” – In Gee Chun"

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Ha Na Jang, who was questioned by Korean media when she arrived at Incheon Airport following her Singapore victory, told reporters that she’s “really sorry for what happened to Chun. I hope to see her at the next tournament.”

Will Jang’s statement to Korean media be sufficient to set the matter to rest?

Not for Chun’s father, who remains distressed about the apparent lapse in manners and protocol:

"“Regardless of how the accident came about, there has been no proper apology from Jang’s side even though a player was left unable to compete in a tournament.”"

Next: Women's Golf: 10 to Watch in 2016

The entry list for The Founders Cup, the next event on the LPGA Tour calendar, will not be available until next week, so we’ll not know for a few days if Chun will be able to contend. Let’s hope that this situation resolves itself without further exchanges and acrimony and that the spirit of the game will carry everyone forward.

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