The 13th edition of the Desant Korea Match Play ($800,000 prize fund) on the Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA) Korean Tour will be held June 1-4 at Kingsdale Golf Club (Par 72, 7,323 yards) in Chungju, Chungcheongbuk-do.
The tournament is the only match-play event on the KPGA Korean Tour and will feature a 64-man field to determine the winner.
The 15 2022 Tour winners, three of this year’s winners, the top 13 Genesis Points finishers from last year and one nominated player earned a direct entry into the field of 64, and a 120-player round of 64 on Sept. 29 determined the remaining 32.
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 onward, players will play one-on-one match-play, and if they lose, they will be eliminated.
As a result of the groupings, last year’s winner Park Eun-shin was placed in Group 7 alongside Park Sung-kook, Ha Chung-hoon, and Kevin Jeon.
Kim Dong-min, who won the KB Financial Live Championship last week, will compete in Group 15 with Jang Hee-min, Choi Min-chul, and Lee Geun-ho.
This year’s GS Caltex Mae Kyung Open winner Chung Chan-min is not participating, while defending SK Telecom Open champion Baek Seok-hyun is in Group 16 with Go Gun-taek, Jung Jeong-woong, and Kim Chan-woo.
Seo Yo-seop, the No. 1 overall seed, is in Group 1 and will face Lee Jae-kyung, Lee Seung-chan, and Kang Min-seok.
In the 13th edition of the event, the No. 1 seed has never won the title and has never finished higher than fourth.
The best result for a No. 1 seed is a fifth-place finish by Kim Tae-hoon in 2021, while Seo’s best result at this event is a runner-up finish in 2019.
No player has yet won back-to-back titles.
“This is the tournament that gave me my first victory, so I’m eager to defend my title,” said defending champion Park Eun-shin, “and I’ve made sure that my body and game are in tip-top shape for this tournament.”
Park has proven to be a strong match-play player, having defeated Ahn by nine holes at this event in 2019.
Another player who is strong in match play is Lee Hyung-jun.
Lee is the only two-time defending champion, having won the event in 2015 and 2019. He’s won every four years, so it’s his turn again this year.
“I personally love match play, so I’m eager to win,” said Lee, who was paired with Lee Tae-hee, Bae Yun-ho, and Park Young-gyu in Group 10, “and I’ll be aggressive in every match 메이저놀이터.”
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 straight week. 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, who is first in the prize money standings, is not competing.