I’m “The Tiger Killer” who fought back and beat Woods at the 2009 PGA Championship to hand him his first-ever defeat after a major 54-hole lead.

YE Yang made history in many ways in 2009.

Yang Yong-eun, as he is officially known, pulled off one of the biggest upsets in golf history when he overcame a two-shot deficit to beat four-time champion Tiger Woods by three shots at the championship. the PGA.

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At the time, Woods, then a 14-time major champion, had never lost a major while leading after 54 holes.

His record was 14-0.

Woods had also won three of his last four events heading into the tournament at Hazeltine National in Minnesota, and was in cruise control heading into Sunday’s final round.

The script was already written.

Woods was supposed to win the Wanamaker Trophy for the third time in four years.

But the world No. 1 at the time did not intend to face a determined 37-year-old South Korean determined to win his first major title.

Padraig Harrington, who was tied with Yang overnight, fell early Sunday when he quintupled the par-3 8th.

A three-man race to the finish quickly turned into a two-man sprint.

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Woods and Yang continued to trade blows, but it was golf’s GOAT who buckled under the pressure.

His two-shot advantage quickly disappeared after recording two bogeys in his first eight holes.

Woods and Yang were stuck at six under until the South Korean hit a Tiger-style shot on the 14th.

He chipped in for eagle on the 352-yard par-4 to take the lead with four holes to play.

Tiger could have tied Yang at 15th with a 12-foot birdie putt, but he fell agonizingly short.

They traded pars over the next two holes and both made bogey on the par-three 17th to give Yang a one-point lead on the final hole.

Any hope Woods had of overcoming the deficit quickly disappeared when Yang hit one of the biggest shots of the PGA Championship as he approached the 18th.

Yang’s second shot, from just over 200 yards with a hybrid club, had to clear a large bunker and miss a nearby tree.

He did just that, landing less than ten feet from the flag on the 72nd green and setting it up for birdie.

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Woods, usually all-conquering, was helpless in the face of what was happening and hit his second shot into the rough off the green.

He finished with a bogey while Yang holed his birdie putt and pumped his fist as he won his first major title.

It was the first major league victory for an Asian-born player and he quickly became known as “The Tiger Killer”.

Speaking about the origins of his nickname, Yang said: “When I won the 2006 HSBC Championship in Shanghai, Tiger, who was on an earlier flight, had finished with a good score. But I arrived later and I I beat to second place.

“Then at the 2009 PGA Championship, Tiger was leading by two shots going into the final round. But, playing in the same group, I didn’t want to be intimidated by him and focus on my own game, and I eventually edged him out in the lead. of runner. in place by three strokes.

He added: “As a result of these two trends, I was given this nickname.”

The 2009 PGA Championship marked the start of a barren decade for Woods in the majors that only ended with his victory at the 2019 Masters.

As for Yang, he rose to 19th in the world in 2010 but dropped to 638th at the end of 2014 after a series of poor finishes and missed cuts.

He spent 2015 playing on the European Tour and Asian Tour and had a victory on the Japan Golf Tour in 2018.

The 52-year-old’s major victory in 2009 qualified him for future PGA Championships, although he has failed to qualify for the tournament since 2015.

In 2021, he was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard following the second round.

In 2022, Yang joined the PGA Tour Champions and is expected to make a return to the life-changing tournament later this month.

The PGA Championship will return to Valhalla Golf Club in 2024 and will take place May 13-19.