Golf Festival in 'Haenam'... LPGA Tour's 'BMW Championship' Gets Underway

83 players tee off, including 15 KLPGA players joining the field for the first time in five years
LPGA stars Ryu Haeran, Kim Hyojoo and Yang Heeyoung place in the top 10

With top stars from the LPGA and KLPGA gathering in Haenam, Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, Ryu Haeran, who has won three major titles this season, showed off her sharp shotmaking from the opening day of the BMW Ladies Championship 2026 and moved into contention near the top of the leaderboard.

The tournament, which offers total prize money of $2.35 million, is the second event in the LPGA Tour’s fall “Asian Swing” and the only regular-season LPGA Tour event held in Korea. It is being held over four days starting October 22 at Pine Beach Golf Links in Haenam County, Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City. For the first time in five years, 15 KLPGA Tour players have also joined the field, setting the stage for an especially fierce and high-caliber contest.

Golfer Yoo Hae-ran hits a tee shot on the second hole during the first round. Provided by the BMW Ladies Championship Organizing Committee.

Among Korean players, Ryu Haeran was undoubtedly the standout in the first round on the opening day. Ryu, who has won three major titles on the Korean and U.S. circuits this year and risen to No. 3 in the world rankings, is enjoying the best season of her career. She carded a bogey-free 5-under-par round to join Lauren Coughlin of the United States and others in a tie for third. She is just one stroke behind co-leaders Yuri Yoshida of Japan and Karis Davidson of Australia, who shot 6-under-par 66s.

Kim Hyo-joo, who is aiming for her third win of the LPGA Tour season, opened with a 3-under-par round to sit in a tie for eighth with Yang Hee-young and KLPGA Tour member Kim Min-sun 7. The fortunes of the top-ranked players battling for the KLPGA Tour’s points title and money title were mixed.

Kim Min-sol, ranked No. 13 in the world and regarded as the strongest active player in Korea, carded a 2-under-par round alongside KLPGA Tour stars Park Min-ji and Yoo Hyun-jo to sit in a tie for 18th. Defending champion Kim Se-young, meanwhile, who is seeking to become the tournament’s first back-to-back winner, finished at even par and tied for 40th with Yoon Ina, Chun In-gee and Seo Gyo-rim.

After the round, Ryu said, “Thanks to all the practice I put in, I was able to play well even in the strong winds.”

On making consecutive birdies with putts from more than 10 meters on the pivotal 15th and 16th holes, she added, “The slopes were tricky, but making those gift-like birdies made me feel on top of the world. The greens at the tournaments I played in recently were much faster, so it was relatively easy to judge the distance.” Asked about the possibility of winning the Bear Trophy, she replied, “I won’t think about it and will focus only on my game.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.