'Super Rookie' Bang Sin-sil Cheers "Victory in 5th Tournament"

E1 Charity Open Final Round 3: 2-Stroke Victory
Yoo Seoyeon2 and Seo Yeonjeong Tied for 2nd, Park Jiyoung 4th
Choi Hyejin 7th, Park Gyeol 11th, Lee Sehee 16th

‘Rising star’ Bang Sin-sil wins as a rookie.

On the 28th, Bang Sin-sil added a 2-under-par 70 in the final third round of the KLPGA Tour E1 Charity Open (total prize money 900 million KRW) held at Seongmunan Country Club in Wonju, Gangwon Province (par 72, 6602 yards), securing a 2-stroke victory (9-under-par 207). She maintained the lead from the first round through to the final round in a ‘wire-to-wire’ win, marking her first victory on the tour. The winner’s prize money is 162 million KRW.

Bang Sin-sil surpassed 200 million KRW in total prize money (278.89 million KRW) after just five regular tour events, setting the record for the fewest tournaments to reach this milestone. The previous record was held by Choi Hye-jin, Cho A-yeon, and Park Min-ji, who each surpassed 200 million KRW after six events. This year, five players have claimed their first regular tour wins in the 10 KLPGA Tour events held so far: Lee Ye-won, Lee Ju-mi, Choi Eun-woo, Park Bo-gyeom, and Bang Sin-sil.

Rookie Bang Sin-sil (right) is cheering after securing the victory on the final day of the E1 Charity Open.
[Photo by KLPGA]

Starting as a co-leader by one stroke, Bang Sin-sil made two birdies. She secured her first birdie on the 5th hole (par 4), parred the next 10 holes, and added a crucial birdie on the final 18th hole (par 5). Although she performed well with a 4th place finish at last month’s KLPGA Championship and 3rd place at the NH Investment & Securities Ladies Championship earlier this month, she had faltered just short of victory. However, this time she played cleanly without any bogeys and lifted the winner’s trophy.

Bang Sin-sil is the first rookie this year to win, and with this victory, she has secured her full tour card for the remaining tournaments this year and the 2025 season. However, she will not participate in next week’s Lotte Open as the player list is already finalized; she will use her full seed starting from the Celltrion Queens Masters, which begins on June 9. Bang Sin-sil’s wire-to-wire first win is the 10th in KLPGA history and the first since Yoon In-na’s victory at the Ever Collagen Queens Crown about 10 months ago in July last year.

Standing tall at 173 cm, Bang Sin-sil recorded an average driving distance of 264.6 yards this season, establishing herself as the tour’s top ‘long hitter.’ However, due to the limited number of tournaments she has played, she is not ranked in the driving distance standings. After finishing 40th in last year’s KLPGA Tour Qualifying Tournament, she has been competing in the Dream (2nd tier) Tour alongside the main tour this year. During this tournament, she battled a cold and pain in her right wrist and has also overcome the challenges of hyperthyroidism diagnosed in 2019. Bang Sin-sil has risen to 6th place in prize money (278.89 million KRW), 6th in the overall points race (146 points), and 3rd in rookie points (651 points).

Yu Seo-yeon 2 and Seo Yeon-jung tied for 2nd place (7-under-par 209), while Park Ji-young, Hong Ji-won, and Kim Hee-ji shared 4th place (6-under-par 210). LPGA member Choi Hye-jin improved by 4 strokes to tie for 7th place (5-under-par 211), along with Lee Jung-min, Kim Ga-young, and Kim Min-seon 7. Park Gyeol and Go Ji-won tied for 11th place (4-under-par 212), and Lee Se-hee finished tied for 16th place (3-under-par 213).