The year he turned 19, he started golf by picking up balls at a driving range in Jeju. In 1996, he passed the Korean pro test. In 1997, he was named Rookie of the Year.
The year he turned 30, he won his first pro title at the SBS Pro Golf Championship. Two years later, he won his first Japan tour title at the Sun Chlorella Classic. In 2005, he won for the third time on the Japan tour.
The breakthrough yearThe year he turned 34, he won the Korea Open in September, and in November he won the HSBC Champions two strokes ahead of Tiger Woods, the world No. 1, and his name became known.
In 2007, he passed PGA Tour Qualifying School. In 2008, he lost his card after finishing 157th on the money list and kept his tour card by going back through Qualifying School.
The year he turned 37, he won his first PGA Tour title at the Honda Classic in March, and in August he beat Tiger Woods, the leader after three rounds, by three strokes at the PGA Championship, the first Asian player to win a major. The New York Times ran a headline saying the player ranked 110th had beaten the No. 1. In 2010, he started the last day of the Korea Open 10 strokes behind the leader and came back to win.
In 2012, he and Kim Kyung-tae won a playoff at the Royal Trophy to secure the Asia team’s win. The next year, he captained the Asia team at the same event. In 2014, he missed the cut at the Web.com Tour Championship and lost his PGA Tour status.
The year he turned 46, he won The Crowns on the Japan tour, his first win in 7 years and 6 months, since the 2010 Korea Open. In 2019, he played in the 101st PGA Championship on a lifetime exemption, his 11th straight appearance.
The year he turned 50, he announced he was joining the PGA Tour Champions. By December 2023, he had made the cut in all 52 Champions Tour events over two years. In 2024, he won the Ascension Charity Classic, his first Champions Tour title, in his 72nd start.
In 2025, he finished the Champions Tour season 18th on the money list. In 2026, he played in the PGA Championship, then finished runner-up in a playoff on the Champions Tour in August and sixth in September.
Yang Yong-eun (born 1972) turned pro in 1996, the year he turned 24, by passing the Korean pro test, and became known on Nov 12, 2006, the year he turned 34, when he beat Tiger Woods to win the HSBC Champions. On Aug 17, 2009, the year he turned 37, he became the first Asian player to win a major, at the PGA Championship.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.