Goyang: The host nation, South Korea, commenced the LPGA match-play event on Thursday with a win and a tie against Sweden. The competition is being held at the New Korea Country Club, located just northwest of Seoul.
According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean duo Kim Hyo-joo and Choi Hye-jin secured a win against Maja Stark and Linn Grant of Sweden in a fourball contest, concluding the match 3 and 2. Meanwhile, Ko Jin-young and Ryu Hae-ran of South Korea tied with Sweden's Ingrid Lindblad and Madelene Sagstrom at the par-72, 6,385-yard course.
In the Kim-Choi vs. Stark-Grant match, South Korea initially gained an advantage with a birdie by Choi on the par-3 second hole. However, Sweden tied the match with a birdie from Grant on the next hole. South Korea regained its lead with a birdie from Kim on the par-5 fourth hole and maintained their advantage throughout. The South Korean team extended their lead by three holes on the par-4 ninth with a birdie and sealed their victory on the 16th hole.
In the match between Ko and Ryu against Lindblad and Sagstrom, South Korea held a 1-up lead through 13 holes. Lindblad's birdie on the par-5 14th hole brought Sweden back to a tie. Both teams continued to match pars and birdies for the remaining holes, resulting in a tie.
The International Crown event features teams from seven countries, including South Korea, the United States, Japan, Australia, Thailand, Sweden, and China, as well as a World Team representing players from other regions. Each match win earns a point, while tied matches yield half a point to each team.
Teams were seeded based on the world rankings of their top four players as of August 4. Despite recent injury withdrawals, the seeding remained unchanged. South Korea, placed in Pool B, is set to face the World Team on Friday and second-seeded Japan on Saturday.
In other matches on Thursday, the World Team earned 1 1/2 points against Japan. Canada's Brooke Henderson and Chinese Taipei's Hsu Wei-Ling defeated Ayaka Furue and Mao Saigo 2 and 1. Charley Hull of England and Lydia Ko of New Zealand tied against Miyu Yamashita and Rio Takeda.
In Pool A matches, defending champions Thailand, seeded fifth, split their two matches with fourth-seeded Australia. Jeeno Thitikul and Pajaree Anannarukarn secured a win for Thailand, while Minjee Lee and Stephanie Kyriacou achieved victory for Australia.
Top-seeded United States emerged victorious in both matches. Yealimi Noh and Angel Yin defeated Liu Yan and Yin Ruoning 5 and 4, while Lilia Vu and Lauren Coughlin overcame Zhang Weiwei and Liu Ruixin 1-up.
The top two teams from each pool after Saturday's matches will advance to the semifinals on Sunday morning, followed by the final in the afternoon. All pool matches are conducted in a fourball format, while the semifinals and final will include a combination of foursome and singles formats.
This marks the fifth edition of the International Crown, and previous events have seen different winners. South Korea previously won the 2018 competition when they hosted the event for the first time.