Im Seong-jae (25, CJ Logistics), the signboard of Korean men’s golf, is visiting Korea for a long time to participate in the Korea Professional Golf (KPGA) Korean Tour.
Im Seong-jae will participate in the Korean Tour Woori Financial Championship (total prize money 1.5 billion won, prize money 300 million won) held at the Ferrum Club (par 72, 7232 yards) in Yeoju, Gyeonggi-do for four days from the 11th.
It is the first time in 3 years and 7 months since the Genesis Championship in October 2019 that Im Seong-jae, who currently ranks 18th in the world and has the highest ranking among Korean players, is playing in a domestic competition.
Im Seong-jae planned to participate in the Woori Financial Championship last year as well, but was canceled after testing positive for Corona 19 right before the tournament.
Im Seong-jae’s recent trend in front of Korean fans after a long time is not bad. He has been in the top 10 for the past three consecutive years, including a tie for 8th at the Wells Fargo Championship, which ended on the 8th. He has made seven top-10 finishes this season, though he has yet to win a championship.
Lim Seong-jae will also participate in the Hangzhou Asian Games scheduled for September with the Taegeuk mark, and three out of four men’s national teams will participate in this competition.
Except for Kim Si-woo (CJ Logistics), who is active on the PGA Tour, Lim Seong-jae and amateurs Cho Woo-young (22) and Jang Yu-bin (21)메이저사이트 challenged for the Woori Financial Championship.
Jang Yu-bin performed impressively last week at the GS Caltex Maekyung Open, tied for 8th place. Jo Woo-young also won the Golfzon Open held in Jeju in April and became the first amateur winner in the KPGA tournament in 10 years.
If Cho Woo-young wins the Woori Financial Championship, he will become the second player to win two Korean tours as an amateur after Kim Gyeong-tae (37, Shinhan Financial Group) in 2006.
‘Defending champion’ Jang Hee-min (21, DB damage insurance) challenges for a second consecutive victory. Jang Hee-min won the first win at the Woori Financial Championship after participating in two KPGA Korean Tour tournaments in 2022.
Jang Hee-min said, “The Woori Financial Championship, which I participate in as a defending champion, is the most important tournament this year. I will play with confidence because I experienced the championship last year. I will do my best to defend the title.”
One of the points to watch is whether long hitter Jung Chan-min (24, CJ Logistics), who won his first victory in the previous tournament, the Maekyung Open, can continue his momentum for two weeks in a row. He, who ranked first in driving distance last year (average 317.1 yards), drew attention by showing his changed short game ability at the Maekyung Open.
Meanwhile, a total of 144 players compete in this event. The winner of the competition will receive 1,000 Genesis points along with a seed from 2024 to 2025.
With a total prize money of 1.5 billion won and a winning prize of 300 million won, it is the largest prize money tournament on the Korean Tour along with the KPGA Championship and the Genesis Championship.