Seo Kyo-rim vs. Kim Min-sol: Hana Financial Championship opens Thursday in W1.6b battle

The KLPGA Tour's Hana Financial Group Championship, carrying a total purse of 1.5 billion won ($1.11 million) and a first-place prize of 270 million won, tees off Thursday for four days at The Heaven Country Club (par 72, 6,819 yards) on Daebudo island in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province.

Hosted by Hana Financial Group and organized by the KLPGA, the tournament draws a star-studded international field. Among the headline storylines: defending champion Lee Da-yeon chasing a third title at this event, Lee Min-ji looking to break her playoff curse, and the season-long rivalry between Seo Kyo-rim and Kim Min-sol as both chase the KLPGA Tour's all-time single-season earnings record.

Seo and Kim, the same age and locked in a fierce battle for the season's top ranking, both enter the week with a shot at surpassing 1.6 billion won in single-season earnings. International contenders — including Lydia Ko of New Zealand, Lee Min-ji of Australia, the Iwai Akie-Chisato sisters of Japan and Tseng Ya-ni of Taiwan — add global star power, but domestic fans are expected to keep their eyes fixed on the same-age rivals.

Seo has won four times this season and leads the tour in victories, prize money, player-of-the-year points and scoring average. A solo second-place finish or better would make her the first player in KLPGA Tour history to surpass 1.6 billion won in a single season, setting an all-time record. Seo also carries good memories of the venue: she claimed her first tour title at The Heaven Country Club at the Inca Financial The Heaven Masters in June.

Kim ranks second to Seo in most major categories with three wins this season and could leapfrog her rival in both victories and prize money with a win this week. The course is set at 6,819 yards, with the final two holes — the par-4 17th and par-5 18th — significantly lengthened from previous setups, an adjustment expected to favor Kim's combination of power and attacking instincts.

Lee Da-yeon, who won this event in 2023 and 2025, is targeting a third title and back-to-back championships. She is riding momentum after claiming her 10th career tour victory last month at the Aurora World Championship.

Lee Min-ji, a Hana Financial Group-sponsored player, needs to end her playoff misery at this tournament. She has finished runner-up here three times in playoff losses — to Song Ga-eun in 2021, and to Lee Da-yeon in both 2023 and 2025. Lee is determined to avenge those defeats against the player who has beaten her twice, though a recent slump raises questions about how competitive she can be.

Lydia Ko, a Paris Olympics gold medalist and LPGA Hall of Fame inductee, is again competing at her sponsor's event. Japan's next-generation duo, the Iwai Akie-Chisato sisters — each with a win on the US circuit — are also considered title contenders. Park Bo-gyeom, who claimed her first major title last week at the KB Financial Group Golden Life Championship, rounds out the list of players to watch.

All four rounds of the Hana Financial Group Championship will be broadcast live on SBS Golf, Naver, Daum Kakao and U+ Mobile TV, with the first and second rounds also airing simultaneously on SBS.