Danielle Kang wins her first Women's PGA championship

Danielle Kang

BY WINNING her first Women’s PGA Championship, Danielle Kang finally lived up to the promise that was expected when as a amateur golf champion she decided to turn pro.

The San Francisco golfer birdied the 18th hole to win the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club outside of Chicago on Sunday.

After winning on the 18th hole, the 24-year old Kang teared up.

"If I could wish anything, I would wish that my dad saw me won,'' said Kang, wiping tears from her eyes. "I think that it's been a really difficult road for me the past four or five years. It's life, though, you pick yourself up and you have to keep working hard at it, and then believe in what you're doing, and not letting yourself down. Kang's father, who caddied for her at the beginning of her golf career, passed away of cancer in 2013.

Kang is probably most famous for playing in the 2007 U.S. Women's Open as a 14-year-old, but it's taken her a while to learn how to win as a professional. 

Her first WPGA win was her 31st major championship and just her first top 10. She's also played in nearly 200 events as a pro on the LPGA Tour before grabbing that first win.