Meet Jiyai Shin's parents: The golfer's journey after her mother's tragic death revealed

They say a heartbreaking incident can change a life for both good and bad. Whether fortunate or unfortunate, something similar happened to Jiyai Shin when she was growing up. Her mother died when she was young. Despite the challenges, Shin persevered and eventually made it into professional golf, and now she is living her dream.

Shin was born on April 28, 1988, in Yeonggwang-gun, South Korea. Although she is a professional golfer who has already won several victories in her career, she is secretive about her personal life. Shin has over 1,300 followers on her public Instagram account, but surprisingly, all of her posts are related to golf. According to some reports, her father was a former minister, while her mother lived a normal life. Her father's name was Jeseop Shin, but she has not revealed her mother's name.

The 36-year-old first touched a golf club when she was just 11 years old. As the LPGA Tour website reveals, it was her father and coach Hyunjee Chun who motivated her to play golf. However, the tragic death of her mother turned the golfer's life upside down. It happened when Shin was only 16 years old and she lost her mother in a tragic car accident. In the same unfortunate accident, her sister and brother were seriously injured and were hospitalized for almost a year.

Shin actually moved into the hospital with them to care for them. When she left the hospital with them in 2005, it was also the remarkable beginning of Shin's golf career. Although Jiyai Shin had been playing golf since early childhood, her first major victory did not come until 2005, when she won the KLPGA, becoming the only amateur to do so while still in high school.

Shin never won a single tournament during her mother's lifetime, but this unfortunate accident did not stop her from shining on the green. Jiyai Shin used the insurance money to finance her career and her career as a professional golfer took an interesting turn.

What turn did Jiyai Shin’s career take after 2005?

In 2006, she joined the KLPGA and was named Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year. In 2007, the golfer made three top-six finishes in eight LPGA starts as a non-member, including a T3 at the Evian Masters. Jiyai Shin didn't let up, winning the 2008 RICOH Women's British Open, the Mizuno Classic and the season-ending ADT Championship, also as a non-member of the LPGA Tour. That same year, Shin became the first Korea LPGA player to win the season's Grand Slam and received a 10-year exemption from the KLPGA.

Her rookie year was 2009. Although it wasn't exactly full of wins and top finishes, it was by no means a bad year. In the final round of the CN Canadian Women's Open, she scored a career-low 63 points, finishing tied for 10th place. The golfer won the Masters GC Ladies on the Japan LPGA, the P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship Presented by John Q. Hammons, and the Wegmans LPGA. Thanks to her perseverance, Jiyai Shin now has more than 45 top-10 finishes and more than 10 wins in her career.