Jessica
Pegula dedicated an emotional message after winning the
Korea Open, the country
where her mother, Kim Pegula, hails from.
Despite not
originally planning to participate in the Korea Open, Pegula decided to enter
at the last minute following her early exit from the China Open. She received a
wildcard entry from the organizers and entered the tournament as the top seed.
The
American, who has had a great year, lived up to her billing as the favorite and
won the tournament without much difficulty, defeating China's Yue Yuan 6-2, 6-3
in the final. Along the way, she had already overcome Viktoria Kuzmova, Ashlyn
Krueger, Clare Liu, and Yanina Wickmayer.
With her
fantastic week in Korea, Pegula secured her fourth career title and her second
of the year. She also maintained her World No. 4 ranking, despite the pressure
from Elena Rybakina, who had been closing the gap in the
WTA Ranking.
Pegula used
her social media to send a message to her fans and, in particular, to the
people who supported her in Korea. She also mentioned her connection with the
Asian country, where her mother is from:
“This one
is extra special. I am half Korean. I don’t speak and I am still learning about
my culture (my mom was adopted and left on a doorstep of a Korean police
station) but I have been overwhelmed by the support from Korean fans,” Pegula
said.
“My mom
visited her orphanage here when I played this event 4 years ago. It was the
first time she felt open about learning about her past,” she added.
Her health
struggles the past year made this tournament a goal to win. It has been such an
honor to play in front of you,” world No. 4 concluded.
With this
result, Pegula has essentially closed out her calendar, and her next and final
challenge will be at the WTA Finals. This will be her second participation, as
she was there last year but fell in the round-robin phase, suffering three
losses and no wins.
