South Korea‘s Golf Highlight: BMW Ladies Championship makes first appearance on a spectacular links course.

+++ South Korea's only LPGA tournament takes place from October 16 to 19 for the first time at Pine Beach Golf Links +++ World-class field led by defending champion Hannah Green (AUS) tees off +++ 78 players compete for $2.3 million in prize money and three Hole-in-One Awards: the all-electric BMW i7 and BMW iX, as well as the MINI John Cooper Works Countryman ALL4 +++

Munich. Since its inception in 2019, the BMW Ladies Championship has been a highlight on the sports calendar of golf-loving South Korea as the only tournament on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour in the country. Over 250,000 fans have attended the event to date. To bring world-class golfers closer to fans across the nation, the tournament, organised by BMW Korea, regularly changes its venue. This year and next, the BMW Ladies Championship will be held at Pine Beach Golf Links near Gwangju in the southwest of the country. The tournament will feature a spectacular layout, combining the Pine Course on the front nine and the Beach Course on the back nine, with numerous holes stretching along the coastline.

Golf fans in South Korea can look forward not only to the unique BMW tournament experience, for which the premium automaker is renowned at its golf events worldwide, but also to an impressive lineup of stars. The compact field of 78 players will compete across all four days, as there is no cut at this event. This ensures a high-quality field: 68 world-class golfers, including defending champion Hannah Green (AUS), will tee off, along with eight high-profile tournament invitees and two Korean amateur players. Among the competitors are former champions Minjee Lee (AUS, 2023), ranked fourth in the world and Jin Young Ko (KOR, 2021). Representing Germany is Olympic silver medalist Esther Henseleit.

The prize money for the BMW Ladies Championship has been increased by $100,000 compared to last year, now totalling $2.3 million, and will rise to $2.6 million by 2029. Additionally, players have the extraordinary chance to win three Hole-in-One Vehicles. The first ace on the par-3 holes 8, 13, and 15 will be rewarded with an iconic model from the BMW Group. At hole 8, the prize is the MINI John Cooper Works Countryman ALL4, the largest MINI model to date. The all-electric premium sedan BMW i7 is the Hole-in-One Award at hole 13, while the all-electric premium SAV BMW iX awaits a new owner at hole 15.

In the history of the BMW Ladies Championship, three players have earned the hole-in-one award. Kristen Gillman was the first, achieving her first professional ace at the inaugural event in 2019, winning a BMW 740Li xDrive. At the 2022 BMW Ladies Championship, fans celebrated two Hole-in-One Awards in a single day: South Korea’s Na Yeon Choi won a BMW X7 xDrive40i, while Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn claimed a BMW 740i.

The BMW Ladies Championship made its debut in 2019 at LPGA International Busan in the southeast of the country, where the second edition was also held two years later. In 2022, the tournament moved to Oak Valley Country Club in northern South Korea. The Seowon Valley Country Club, located about an hour’s drive from the capital Seoul, hosted the tournaments in 2023 and 2024.