Lineup includes one silver medal and 24 card-type gold and silver pieces featuring 12 tour players
Korea Minting and Security Printing Corp. is releasing a set of commemorative medals to mark the opening of the 2026 KLPGA Tour season.
The state-run minting company announced Tuesday it had partnered with the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association to produce the official 2026 KLPGA commemorative medal collection.
The lineup consists of card-type gold and silver pieces featuring 12 players selected as the association's official promotional models, along with a silver medal representing the KLPGA as an institution.
Founded in 1978, the KLPGA has driven the growth of women's professional golf in South Korea and produced numerous top-ranked players. It now operates as one of the country's leading professional sports organizations, running 81 tournaments in 2026 with a total purse of 39.3 billion won.
The card-type gold pieces (Au 99.9%, 0.5g, 6x8mm) and card-type silver pieces (Ag 999.9%, 5g, 16x27mm) adopt a photo-card concept design that captures each of the 12 players' individual personalities. The front of each piece features a card design using the player's image. The medal also incorporates the official KLPGA logo and the minting corporation's latent-image technology — an anti-counterfeiting feature that displays different images depending on the viewing angle — to enhance collectible value.
A silver medal (Ag 99.9%, 31.1g, 40mm) rounds out the collection. Its front face incorporates the KLPGA trophy and tournament scenery into the design to evoke the history and memorable moments of women's professional golf in South Korea, while the official KLPGA logo on the reverse adds institutional symbolism.
The company plans to use the product line to expand a new segment of the collectibles market that combines sports fandom culture with the keepsake value of commemorative medals. The player-centered product structure — allowing fans to choose and collect pieces featuring their favorite players — is expected to offer a differentiated collecting experience.
"This KLPGA commemorative medal collection captures the players' performances and fans' support in a single collection," said President Seong Chang-hun. "We hope it establishes itself as new collecting content for sports fandom culture by combining the fun of player photo-card collecting with the keepsake value of commemorative medals."
kwonhl@heraldcorp.com
