Winningest Player Gokun Taek vs Prize Money King Park Sanghyun 'Deciding the Best in Korea'

KPGA Tour DB Insurance Promy Open Kicks Off
Gogun Taek Aims for 2nd Consecutive Win "Good Game Sense and Stamina"
Park Sang Hyun's 20 Years of Experience... Ankle Injury a Variable

The Korea Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA) Tour embarks on a roughly seven-month-long journey starting on the 11th.

Goguntaek

The domestic season opener, the 19th DB Insurance Promy Open, will be held at the Ravie Belle Country Club Old Course (Par 71, 7,271 yards) in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province. The total prize money is 700 million KRW, with the winner's prize being 140 million KRW. A total of 144 players will participate, including defending champion Ko Gun-taek, last year's money leader Park Sang-hyun, amateur winner of last year's Gunsan CC Open Jang Yu-bin, Seo Yo-seop, Choi Jin-ho, Lee Tae-hee, and Lee Chang-woo, who has completed his military service.

Ko Gun-taek is an emerging force. He claimed his first professional victory at this tournament last year. Riding that momentum, he secured three wins by capturing the Honors K·Solago CC Han Jang-sang Invitational and the Shinhan Donghae Open. If he wins, he will achieve the tournament's first two-time victory and consecutive titles. He said, "This tournament holds a special place in my heart as it was where I earned my first professional win and it is the season opener. Having already sharpened both my competitive edge and stamina through the Asian Tour, I am determined to defend my title."

Park Sang-hyun

Park Sang-hyun is a veteran entering his 20th year on the tour. He has amassed 12 wins on the KPGA Tour. He admitted, "I never expected to be on the tour this long," but did not hide his ambition, saying, "Now my goal is to earn the 'lifetime exemption' which requires over 20 wins." However, a sprained ankle ahead of the opener poses a variable.

Jazz Janewattananond from Thailand, who has seven wins on the Asian Tour, also joined. Turning professional in 2010, he registered as the youngest player on the Asian Tour at 14 years and 3 months old. His prime was in 2019, when he won four titles including the Kolon 62nd Korean Open, SMBC Singapore Open, BNI Indonesian Masters, and Thailand Masters. Janewattananond said, "I know the KPGA Tour is highly competitive. My goal this year is to secure at least one win."

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