Military service looming for Bae
South Korean golfer Bae Sang-moon may have to put his burgeoning PGA Tour career on hold to complete military service.
The Yonhap news agency reported that the 28-year-old, two-time PGA Tour winner had his overseas travel permit extension request rejected by the Military Manpower Administration in South Korea.
According to his mother, Bae was ordered to return home and complete compulsory military service.
Bae, who had already qualified for next year’s Masters at Augusta, will face criminal charges if he does not return to Korea by the end of January.
All South Korean men between 18 and 35 must complete two years of military service.
Technically, South Korea is still at war with North Korea as a peace treaty went unsigned following the 1950-53 Korean War.
Some athletes have been able to circumvent the requirement, with the Korean government waiving the mandatory practice for any athlete who wins Asian Games gold or an Olympic medal.
Bae won the Frys.Com Open in October, and also triumphed at the HP Byron Nelson Championship in 2013.
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