The 13th edition of the Desant Korea Matchplay ($800,000 prize fund) on the Korean Professional Golf Association (KPGA) Korean Tour will be held at Kingsdale Golf Club (Par 72, 7,323 yards) in Chungju, Chungcheongbuk-do, from 1 June for four days.
The tournament is the only match-play event on the KPGA Korean Tour and will feature a 64-man field to determine the winner.메이저사이트
The 15 2022 Tour winners, three of this year’s winners, the top 13 players on last year’s Genesis Points list and one nominated player qualified directly for the round of 64, with the remaining 32 players determined by a 120-player round of 64 on 29 September.
The 64 players were divided into 16 groups, with the winner of each group advancing to the Round of 16. From the round of 16 onwards, players will play one-on-one match-play and will be eliminated if they lose.
As a result of the groupings, last year’s winner Park Eun Shin has been placed in Group 7 alongside Park Sung Kook, Ha Chung Hoon and Kevin Jeon.
Kim Dong-min, who topped the KB Financial Live Championship last week, will compete in Group 15 alongside Jang Hee-min, Choi Min-chul and Lee Geun-ho.
This year’s GS Caltex Maekyung Open winner Chung Chan-min is not participating, while defending champion Baek Seok-hyun has been drawn in Group 16 alongside Ko Gun-taek, Jung Jeong-woong and Kim Chan-woo.
Seo Yo-seop, seeded first overall, is in Group 1 and will face Lee Jae-kyung, Lee Seung-chan and Kang Min-seok.
In the 13th edition of the event, no No. 1 seed has ever won the title and no No. 1 seed has ever finished higher than fourth.
Kim Tae-hoon’s previous best result for a No. 1 seed was a fifth place finish in 2021, while Seo’s best result in this event was a runner-up finish in 2019.
No player has ever won back-to-back titles.
“This is the tournament that gave me my first win, so I’m eager to defend my title,” said defending champion Park Eun-shin, “and I’ve made sure that my physical condition and game are at their peak for this tournament.”
Park has proven to be a strong match-play player, with his nine-hole victory over Ahn Baek-jun at this event in 2019 holding the record for the closest margin of victory.
Another player who is strong in match play is Lee Hyung-joon.
Lee is the only two-time defending champion, having won the event in 2015 and 2019. He has won the tournament every four years, and it’s his turn again this year.
“I personally love match play, so I’m eager to win,” said Lee, who is in Group 10 with Lee Tae-hee, Bae Yun-ho, and Park Young-gyu, “and I will be aggressive in every match.”
Lee is returning to the tournament after a four-year absence due to military service in 2020 and 2021 after winning the title in 2019, and an illness last year.
Kim Dong-min, the Genesis Grand Prize points leader, will be looking to win for the second week in a row. Kim, who is second in the prize money standings, can also clinch the top spot in the prize money standings with this tournament as Jeong Chan-min is not competing.