‘Grand Prize’ Choi Hye-jin "Starting the 2021 Season in Jeju~"... What about ‘Number 2’ Yoo Hae-ran?

KLPGA Tour Season Opener Lotte Rent-a-Car Women’s Open Lineup: Top Rankers Including Yoo Hae-ran, Jang Ha-na, Ahn Na-rin, and 2-Time Champion Park Hyun-kyung Join

‘Daesang’ Choi Hye-jin will compete in the KLPGA Tour 2021 season opener, the Lotte Rent-a-Car Women’s Open.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjun, Golf Specialist] "2021 Season Start."

Choi Hye-jin (22, Lotte) is on her march for a ‘4 consecutive Player of the Year awards’. The Lotte Rent-a-Car Women’s Open (total prize money 600 million KRW), opening on the 8th at Lotte Skyhill Golf Club in Seogwipo, Jeju Island (par 72, 6,301 yards), is the first stage of this year’s Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour. She will challenge for back-to-back wins following the final event of the 2020 season, the SK Telecom·ADT Caps Championship held last November. Top-ranked players such as Yoo Hae-ran (19, SK Networks), Jang Ha-na (29, BC Card), and An Na-rin (25, Moonyoung Group) have all gathered.

It is surprising that Choi Hye-jin only had one win last year. After winning Rookie of the Year in 2018, she swept individual titles including multiple wins (5 wins), prize money, scoring average, and Player of the Year in 2019. However, 2020 was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and despite shooting 8-under par on the first day of the S-Oil Championship in June to take the lead, bad weather caused the first round to be canceled. She remained ‘first place without a win’.

Members of the LPGA Tour such as Kim Hyo-joo (26, Lotte), Yoo So-yeon (31, Mediheal), and Lee Jeong-eun6 (25, Daebang Construction) appeared on the domestic stage, intensifying the competition for the championship. Kim Hyo-joo actually swept two wins in June at the Lotte Cantata Women’s Open and in October at the major KB Financial Star Championship, quickly taking the top spot in the prize money rankings. Yoo So-yeon also gained momentum by winning the Kia Motors Korea Women’s Open, known as Korea’s national title, in June.

Fortunately, Choi Hye-jin restored her pride with a win at the final event, achieving ‘3 consecutive Player of the Year awards’. It is noteworthy that she finished in the ‘Top 10’ an impressive 14 times out of 16 tournaments, including one win. Above all, her green hit rate ranking first (83.83%) and her ‘pinpoint iron shots’ are powerful. With world stars like Kim Hyo-joo returning to the U.S., her chances of winning have increased. She said, "I have completed thorough preparations including physical training in Haenam during the winter and practical training in Jeju," and added, "This year, I will secure my first win early."

'Number 2' Yu Hae-ran has early begun her quest for the first victory at the Lotte Rent-a-Car Women's Open.

The second-ranked prize money earner Yoo Hae-ran’s performance is formidable. She achieved the ‘2 consecutive wins’ feat at the Jeju Samdasoo Masters in August. However, with three runner-up finishes at the E1 Charity Open in May, the Otek Carrier Championship in October, and the SK Telecom·ADT Caps Championship, she lacks wins. The ‘2-win champion’ Park Hyun-kyung (20, Korea Land & Housing Corporation) is a dark horse. She is expected to create an early-season storm after securing her second win in May at the KLPGA Championship and in July at the IS Dongseo Busan Open last year.