[Golf Topic] Choi Hye-jin vs. Park Sung-hyun Clash in KLPGA Championship 1R

Choi Hye-jin (left) and Park Sung-hyun play together on the first day of the KLPGA Championship.

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] ○…It is a showdown between Choi Hye-jin (21, Lotte), the 'No. 1 in Korea,' and Park Sung-hyun (27), ranked 3rd in the world.

On the 14th, at Lakewood Golf Club in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province (par 72, 6,540 yards), the first round of the 42nd KLPGA Championship, the first major of the 2020 KLPGA Tour season (total prize money 3 billion KRW), will begin. The two players will start at 12:20 PM from the 1st hole (par 5) along with Lee Da-yeon (23, Mediheal), the champion of the 2020 season opener Hyosung Championship held last December. Choi Hye-jin was the runner-up in 2017 and won last year. Park Sung-hyun won in 2017.

LPGA Rookie of the Year Lee Jeong-eun6 (24, Daebang Construction), KLPGA Rookie of the Year Jo Ah-yeon (20, Volvik), and Park Chae-yoon (26, Samchully) will play together. The group also includes 2013 champion Kim Se-young (27, Mirae Asset), Jang Ha-na (28, BC Card), Lim Hee-jeong (20, Hanwha Q CELLS), Kim Hyo-joo (25, Lotte), Jo Jeong-min (26, MY Munyoung), and Park Min-ji (22, NH Investment & Securities). This tournament is attracting great attention as the first domestic professional golf event since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

A total of 150 players will compete for the top spot. Players who rank joint 102nd or better after the second round will advance to the third round, and among those, the top 70 players will play the fourth round under the 'MDF (Made cut, Did not Finish)' system. Prize money will be awarded to all players to support those facing difficulties due to COVID-19. Even the last place, 150th, will receive 6,246,667 KRW. The winner's prize money is 220 million KRW.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.