Golf Latest News: Golf Star Bae Sang-Moon Begins Compulsory Military Service
Two-time PGA Tour winner Bae Sang-Moon reportedly is going on a brief, two-year hiatus in playing professional golf to give way to a compulsory military service for his country. The news of entering the service came in after the young golfer didn't succeed in obtaining a legal bid intended for temporary deferment.
In fact, Bae went to court in the early part of this year to get the extension of his overseas travel permit, the purpose of which is to play in the United States, but unfortunately, his application was not granted, as per report from AFP via Yahoo! Sports.
Swarmed by several journalists, he said, "I'll be back on tour in 2017." He then proceeded to the army training camp located in Chuncheon, the city capital of Gangwon Province. The city happens to be the hometown of another popular South Korean athlete, Son Heung-Min, a footballer playing for Tottenham Hotspur F.C. in the English Premier League.
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South Korean law mandates that all able-bodied men, 18 up to 35, are required to serve in the military for two years. For those who are aged 25 to 35 and haven't completed the mandatory service will need a special permit to be able to stay out of the country for a significant time. While Bae furnished this permit, it actually has expired since last year.
According to the Korean district court that handled the case and denied his appeal, a conscript (Bae) is not permitted to arbitrarily schedule his entry into the military, even in cases when his professional career is being put to risk of disruption.
While he could have been forced to enter military service earlier, the court actually allowed him to participate in the President's Cup in Incheon a month ago with the condition that he goes straight to the military training camp after the event.
