Birdie Buddy Explained
Birdie Buddy is a South Korean television series set in the world of professional golf. Based on the 2007 comic series of the same title by Lee Hyun-sae, it stars Uee,[1] Lee Yong-woo and Lee Da-hee.[2] [3]
The drama was pre-produced in 2010 (filmed completely before broadcast),[4] and initially expected to air on MBC in December 2010,[5] but the network decided not to give it a timeslot. After several postponements, it aired on cable channel tvN from August 8 to October 25, 2011 on Mondays and Tuesdays at 23:00 (KST).[6] But instead of the original 20 episodes of 70 minutes each, it was re-edited into 24 episodes spanning 45 minutes each.
Synopsis
Sung Mi-soo (Uee) is a cheerful, humble country girl from Gangwon Province. She comes from a poor family, and her mother used to work as a caddie. With her bright personality and determined efforts, Mi-soo strives to become a professional golf player.
On the other hand, Min Hae-ryung (Lee Da-hee) is an elite athlete who has been groomed for professional golf since a young age. Placed in the best environment to play golf, Hae-ryung's emotions are always controlled even though she has a deep emotional wound.
These two girls from different backgrounds share the same dream of being the next top golfer, a dream that leads them to former pro golfer John Lee (Lee Yong-woo).
John Lee was the first Korean to win a PGA title. Other than the fact that he was adopted, his background is a mystery . Aside from golf, he also excels in the Afro-Brazilian dance/martial arts style known as capoeira. Even though he found success by winning the PGA title, John Lee stopped playing golf to become a golf course tester. John Lee agrees to lead Mi-soo and Hae-ryung into becoming the next queens of golf like Se Ri Pak, Michelle Wie, Jiyai Shin, and Eun-Hee Ji.
Cast
Main
Supporting
Mi-soo’s family and friends
- Lee Byung-joon as Sung Kyung-hwan
- Yoon Yoo-sun as Jo Kyung-sook (Mi-soo's mother)
- Park Han-bi as Sung Tae-gab (Mi-soo's brother)
- Yoo In-na as Lee Gong-sook (Mi-soo's friend), in love with Tae-gab
- Han Seung-hyun as Ahn Joong-ki
Hae-ryung’s family and friends
- Oh Hyun-kyung as Min Se-hwa (Hae-ryung's mother)
- Park Sung-woong as Choi Dong-kwan, Min Se-hwa's right-hand man and lover
- Kim Jong-jin as Woo Joon-mo, a skilled greens keeper who is Hae-ryung's long lost father
- Yang Hee-kyung as Uhm Jung-ran, a friend of both Kyung-sook and Se-hwa, who becomes the chief of caddies at Se-hwa's golf club
Others
- Choi Il-hwa as Jay Park, a wealthy and manipulative gambler
- Robert Holley as Yoon Kwang-baek, a former golf pro and now an eccentric recluse who takes on Mi-soo as his student
- Park Young-rin as Park Eun-joo, an energetic young reporter
- Yoon Gi-won as pro-golfer Wang
- Julien Kang as Gary Jung, a golfer hired by Jay Park to play Mi-soo in an unusual golf challenge
- Choo So-young, a scout
- Kim Jung-hak, one of Park's henchmen
- Woo Hyun, a golf equipment maker and friend of John Lee
- Kim Dong-hyeon
- Samuel Kang, a reporter
- Gu Bon-im
Notes and References
- Web site: After School's Uee Talks About Transition to Acting. The Chosun Ilbo. March 30, 2013. August 20, 2011. September 8, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110908090010/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2011/08/20/2011082000290.html. live.
- Web site: Lim. Hye-seon. Song hopes to sweep Asia off its feet again with Birdie. 10Asia. March 29, 2014. February 10, 2010. November 27, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221127203038/http://www.asiae.co.kr/news/view.htm?idxno=2010021017242734896. live.
- Web site: Han. Sang-hee. Birdie Buddy Aiming to Captivate TV Viewers. The Korea Times. March 30, 2013. February 16, 2010. April 14, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190414080645/http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/art/2010/02/201_60881.html. live.
- Web site: Lee. Kyung-nam. Birdie Buddy: A Promising Pre-Produced Drama. https://archive.today/20130413142556/http://enewsworld.interest.me/enews/contents.asp?idx=1177. dead. April 13, 2013. enewsWorld. CJ E&M. March 30, 2013. October 25, 2011.
- Web site: Hong. Lucia. Birdie Buddy in talks to air on MBC in late-December. 10Asia. March 30, 2013. November 25, 2010. March 29, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140329082101/http://www.asiae.co.kr/news/view.htm?idxno=2010112511205829721. live.
- Web site: Kim. Jessia. UIE-starrer series Birdie Buddy pre-sold to 9 countries. 10Asia. March 30, 2013. July 6, 2011. March 29, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140329082105/http://www.asiae.co.kr/news/view.htm?idxno=2011070615154657517. live.
