Goyang: The host South Korea is among seven nations to have qualified for an LPGA match-play event scheduled for this fall.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the LPGA announced that South Korea, the United States, Japan, Thailand, Sweden, Australia, and China will compete in the Oct. 23-26 International Crown.
New Korea Country Club in Goyang, just northwest of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province, will host the four-day match-play competition, which was first held in 2014. The seven national teams were chosen based on the combined number of the world ranking positions for their top four players, with the country having the lowest total as of Monday grabbing the top seed.
This year's event will also feature a brand new Team World, to be made up of one player each from the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa and Oceania. Its lineup, as well as those for the seven countries, will be determined based on the rankings on Aug. 4, following the conclusion of the AIG Women's Open.
The U.S. team, led by world No. 1 Nelly Korda, took the top seed with 34 points, followed by South Korea (53 points), Japan (74 points), Thailand (88 points), Sweden (115 points), Australia (128 points), and China (256 points).
South Korea's top four players at the moment are: Ryu Hae-ran (No. 5), Kim Hyo-joo (No. 9), Ko Jin-young (No. 15), and Choi Hye-jin (No. 24). Kim, Ko, and Choi were teammates on the 2023 team that finished tied for fifth, while Ryu has never played at an International Crown.
Kim, who has won back-to-back Ladies European Tour titles at New Korea Country Club, expressed her eagerness to compete at one of her favorite courses. She noted that representing her country at the International Crown, especially on home soil, is a significant and exciting honor.
Teams seeded 1, 4, 5, and 8 will be in Pool A, and seeds 2, 3, 6, and 7 will compete in Pool B. The event will begin with fourball matches from Oct. 23 to 25, after which the top two teams from each pool will advance to the semifinals on the morning of Oct. 26. The final is set for the afternoon of the same day, following the same format as the semifinals.
The four editions of the International Crown so far have produced four different champions-Spain in 2014, the U.S. in 2016, South Korea as the host nation in 2018, and Thailand in 2023. The 2020 event was canceled due to COVID-19.