An Byeonghun Ties for Ninth in LIV Golf Debut...First Korean Player to Crack the Top 10
by Roh Woolae
Published 08 Feb.2026 10:30(KST)
Updated 10 Feb.2026 07:14(KST)
5-under in Round 4 at LIV Golf season opener in Riyadh
Best finish by a Korean player since LIV Golf launched in 2022
Smylie celebrates individual and team victories
An Byeonghun finished in the top 10 in his LIV Golf debut.
On February 7 (local time), at Riyadh Golf Club (par 72, 7,464 yards) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in the fourth round of the 2026 LIV Golf season-opening event in Riyadh (total prize money of 30 million dollars), he carded eight birdies and three bogeys for a 5-under-par 67. With a final total of 17-under-par 271, An Byeonghun tied for ninth place. He became the first player of Korean nationality to record a top-10 finish in LIV Golf, which launched in 2022.
Before him, three Korean players had competed in LIV Golf last year: Jang Yubin, Song Younghan, and Kim Minkyu, with the best result being Jang Yubin’s tie for 21st at a tournament in the United Kingdom in July last year. However, Korean-New Zealander Danny Lee did win once in 2023.
An Byeonghun played on the PGA Tour until the 2025 season and transferred to LIV Golf this year as captain of the newly formed Korean Golf Club. The Korean Golf Club, consisting of An Byeonghun, Song Younghan, Kim Minkyu, and Danny Lee, combined for 44-under-par in the team competition and finished tied for eighth among 13 teams.
Elvis Smylie of Australia won the tournament with a final total of 24-under-par 264. Smylie, who had competed on the DP World Tour last season, also marked his first event after moving to LIV Golf with a victory. He earned 4 million dollars in individual prize money and 750,000 dollars, which is 25% of the 3 million dollars team prize for his team, Ripper Golf Club, for a total of 4.75 million dollars.
In addition, there is a 1 million dollar team victory bonus that is distributed among the team members at the captain’s discretion. Assuming this is also split evenly at 25% each, the amount Smylie receives increases to a total of 5 million dollars (about 7.3 billion won).
Jon Rahm of Spain finished runner-up by one stroke at 23-under-par 265. For the Korean Golf Club, Song Younghan tied for 30th at 11-under-par 277, while Kim Minkyu and Danny Lee tied for 41st at 8-under-par 280.
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