Kim Min-gyu, Eyes on Setting Prize Money Record at Yeongam... Spotlight on Woosung General Construction Open

KPGA Korean Tour Resumes After 3-Week Break
Kim Min-gyu Aims to Surpass 800 Million Won in Prize Money with Runner-Up or Higher
Defending Champion Park Sang-hyun Eyes Title Defense After Overcoming Slump

Sanghyun Park challenges for a second consecutive victory at the Woosung General Construction Open.

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] Players belonging to the Korea Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA) Korean Tour, who had a three-week break, are now resuming the full-scale ranking race.

The KPGA Korean Tour will start its second half with the Woosung General Construction Open held on the 11th at South Links Yeongam Kyle Phillips Course (par 72, 7,557 yards) in Yeongam, Jeollanam-do. The Woosung General Construction Open is in its 4th year this year. It was previously held at Aramir Golf Course in Changwon, Gyeongnam, but the venue has been changed to a more competitive site. The total prize money this year is 700 million KRW, which is 200 million KRW more than last year. South Links Yeongam has hosted the KPGA Srixon (2nd division) Tour and the Champions (Senior) Tour before, but this is the first time it is hosting a Korean Tour event.

The defending champion (39) is Park Sang-hyun. He debuted on the Korean Tour in 2005 and has accumulated a total of 11 wins. He also has 2 wins on the Japan Golf Tour Organization (JGTO). Park Sang-hyun has entered the top 10 three times this year, including winning the season opener, the DB Insurance Promy Open, in April. Attention is focused on whether he can shake off recent poor form, including missing the cut in the last two tournaments of the first half, and change the momentum. Despite one win, he currently ranks 7th in the Genesis Award points (2,462 points) and 11th in prize money (248.86 million KRW). If he wins, he will become the first player to achieve back-to-back wins in the first two tournaments of the year.

He said, "Playing tournaments has been physically demanding, so I focused on managing my condition during the break," and added, "Since this is a tournament I have won before, I will play with confidence."

A strong candidate to stop Park Sang-hyun's consecutive wins is Kim Min-kyu (21). After winning the Kolon Korean Open held in June, he currently leads both the points race (3,968 points) and prize money (736.6 million KRW). Even finishing as runner-up will make him the first player in Korean Tour history to surpass 800 million KRW in season prize money. It is also favorable for Kim Min-kyu that Lee Jun-seok (Australia), who is second in points, and Kim Bi-o (32), second in prize money, are absent due to their participation in the Asian Tour. Kim Min-kyu expressed confidence, saying, "I will achieve good results in the first tournament of the second half and continue this momentum until the end of the season."

Baek Yong-jun (22), the winner of the last tournament of the first half, the Honors K·Solago CC Han Jang-sang Invitational, will challenge for his second consecutive win. Baek Yong-jun had the disappointment of finishing third after entering the final round tied for the lead in this tournament last year as a recommended player.

Jang Hee-min (20), Park Eun-shin (32), Yang Ji-ho (33), Shin Sang-hoon (24), and Hwang Jung-gon (30) are competing for their second win of the season. Kang Tae-young (24), Kim Jae-ho (40), and Byun Jin-jae (33) are hoping to win sponsor tournaments.