Korean No.1 Withdraws From PGA Tour Q-School To Join LIV Golf On 'Multi-Year Deal'

Korean Tour No.1 Yubin Jang has joined the LIV Golf League "on a multi-year deal" after withdrawing from the final stage of PGA Tour Q-School earlier this week.

Yang, who was the second-highest ranked player in the field at TPC Sawgrass’ Dye’s Valley Course, officially pulled out of PGA Tour qualifying shortly before it was confirmed he had signed for Kevin Na's Iron Heads GC in the PIF-backed league.

The World No.135 was due to play alongside USA's Johnny Keefer and Japan’s Kensei Hirata in Florida, winners of the PGA Tour Americas and Japan Golf Tour, respectively. Hirata remains the highest-ranked golfer in the PGA Tour Q-School field at World No.114, with no replacement lined up for Yang in the 170-man list.

The 22-year-old won the Korean Tour's money list and Player of the Year title in 2024 courtesy of two victories and five runner-up finishes, while he also led the circuit in scoring and driving distance (311.4 yards). Before that, he helped South Korea to team gold at the 2023 Asian Games as an amateur and, consequently, is exempt from military service.

Yang only turned pro late in 2023 but already has three Korean Tour wins under his belt. After becoming the latest LIV Golf signing, Yang is set to become the first South Korean to compete in the 54-hole competition.

According to The Korean Times, Jang is believed to have been convinced to join LIV after playing with new captain, Kevin Na at the Asian Tour's season-ending Saudi International last week - a tournament they both featured in.

However, Kevin Na said in an interview posted by Flushing It on X that Yang's mind was made up at least several weeks before that. Na also confirmed Jang had signed on a “multi-year” deal.

Yang, who reportedly plans to move closer to Na in Las Vegas, will be teammates with Danny Lee and Jinichiro Kozuma following recent announcements that the pair had re-signed.

Reacting to the signing of Yang, Na said: "As a promising young talent from Korea, I've been following his career for years and have had my eye on him to join the team. The Iron Heads needed young talent like his to push our veterans, and I'm confident he has what it takes to become a world-class golfer.

"Yubin's presence shows young Korean golfers a clear path to competing globally against the best, and with an event in Korea this year, his addition is a major boost for our team. It's an incredibly exciting time for Korean golf!"

Meanwhile, Iron Heads' general manager, Martin Kim commented on the completion of their side for 2025.

Kim said: “We’re thrilled to re-sign Danny and Jini, who were pivotal to our strong finish last season. Danny is a proven winner in this league with great energy and Jini’s emerging talent will be essential as we strive to become a contender at every event.

"I’m really loving our roster with the addition of our new young gun [Jang]. It’s going to be a fun ride next season.”

The new LIV Golf campaign begins in Riyadh on February 6-8, 2025 and will take in a handful of new locations before reaching what Iron Heads referred to as their "home event" in Korea between May 2-4 at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club. Three of the team were born in South Korea (Yang, Na, Lee) while Kozuma represents the side's only golfer born in Japan.

Before then, though, LIV Golf Promotions is taking place this week at Riyadh Golf Club as 93 players fight for one spot in the lucrative league next term.