Kim Hanbyeol vs Lee Changwoo 'Genesis Duel'... "Who Will Be the Owner of the 300 Million Won Jackpot?"

Kim Hanbyeol Secures 'Grand Prize + 1st Place Prize Money', Lee Changwoo Gets 'Comeback Chance', Lee Jaekyung and Lee Taehee Join In

'2-win champion' Kim Han-byul has embarked on a '3-win march' at the Genesis Championship.

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] "Hunting two rabbits at once."

It's a head-to-head battle between '2-time champion' Kim Han-byul (24) and Lee Chang-woo (27), the winner of the Choi Kyung-ju Invitational. The Genesis Championship (total prize money 1.5 billion KRW), held on the 8th at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club in Songdo, Incheon (par 72, 7,350 yards), is a premium match boasting the largest prize money in Korea. Along with the 300 million KRW winner's prize, invitations to the PGA Tour's The CJ Cup on the 15th and the Genesis Invitational next February await.

Kim Han-byul currently ranks first in both the points race (2,975 points) and prize money (417.75 million KRW). It's remarkable that she is a rookie who debuted on the Korean Tour last year. In August, she secured her first victory after a playoff battle with Lee Jae-kyung (21, CJ O Shopping) at the Hazzy's Golf KPGA Open, and on the 13th of last month, she achieved back-to-back wins for the first time in 5 years and 11 months since Park Sang-hyun (37, Dong-A Pharmaceutical) swept the 2014 Vayner-Pine Ridge Open in August and the KJ Invitational in October at the Shinhan Donghae Open.

It was surprising that she was cut off at the Choi Kyung-ju Invitational, which ended on the 25th. Kim Han-byul said, "I took a good rest and focused on adjusting my condition," regaining her composure. This time, regardless of the remaining two tournaments with a 300 million KRW winner's prize, it directly connects to securing the prize money title. She is also in a favorable position in the points race. She is eyeing various rewards such as a 100 million KRW bonus, a Genesis car, and a European Tour 2021 season card.

Lee Chang-woo challenges 'consecutive victories in two tournaments' at the Genesis Championship.

Lee Chang-woo is second in both points (2,482 points) and prize money (273.86 million KRW), and with back-to-back wins in two tournaments, he has a golden opportunity to leap to first place. He expressed confidence, saying, "My shot feel in actual play is good," and "I can continue the winning momentum." Lee Jae-kyung, third in points (2,154 points), has joined the competition, and the 'champion squad' including Lee Soo-min (27, KPGA Open Solago), Kim Sung-hyun (22, KPGA Championship), and Lee Tae-hee (36, GS Caltex Maekyung Open) are competing for their second wins of the season.

Lee Tae-hee is especially notable as the 2018 champion. He surged with a 5-under-par on the final day to complete a 2-stroke come-from-behind victory (7-under-par 281). Calling it "the promised land where I escaped a slump over two years," he fired up his fighting spirit, saying, "The goal is obviously to win." The inaugural champion Kim Seung-hyuk (34) is a player to watch. Remembering his perfect fit with the course when he shot 8-under-par on the first day in 2017 and achieved a wire-to-wire victory, he is challenging to reclaim the top spot after three years.

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