Kim Hyo-joo, Ko Jin-young, Choi Hye-jin, Yu Hae-ran: "We have to do well, it's our home course."

Women's golf team event, Hanwha International Crown, kicks off on the 23rd.

Choi Hye-jin, Ko Jin-young, Yu Hae-ran, and Kim Hyo-joo (from right) attend a press conference on the 22nd. [Photo = Kim Dong-chan]

The South Korean team competing in the women's golf team event, the Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown (total prize money $2 million), has vowed to bring home victory for their domestic fans.

The South Korean team, composed of Kim Hyo-joo, Ko Jin-young, Choi Hye-jin, and Yu Hae-ran, will compete in the 5th Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown, held from the 23rd to the 26th at New Korea Country Club (par 72, 6,542 yards) in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.

South Korea, which was established in 2014, aims to reclaim the championship title for the first time in seven years since the 3rd edition held in Incheon in 2018.

Kim Hyo-joo expressed her anticipation at a press conference held at the tournament venue on the 22nd, stating, "Since the tournament is being held in Korea, many people will come to cheer us on. We have the home advantage, and the players are in good spirits, so we will try our best once the competition begins."

Kim Hyo-joo has won the Ladies European Tour (LET) event held at this course for the past two consecutive years.

She added with a smile, "Last week, a LPGA Tour event was also held domestically, so we are playing in Korea for two consecutive weeks. We can't make excuses like adjusting to time differences, so we have no choice but to perform well."

When asked if she had shared her strategies for the course with her teammates given her familiarity with it, she replied, "I know the course well, but we haven't discussed it yet. Even if we do, it will be our secret, so you'll have to wait and see during the matches," keeping her cards close to her chest.

Ko Jin-young chuckled and said, "This morning, I saw that (Kim) Hyo-joo and I needed more sleep, but (the younger) Yu Hae-ran and Choi Hye-jin went up to the course early. If those two play their own games starting tomorrow, then I just need to play my best."

She also added, "I was personally very happy when (Kim) Sei-young won the LPGA Tour event last week. She's now one of the senior Korean players on the LPGA Tour, and I believe that if she shows good performance, the younger players can also show better results."

Choi Hye-jin and Yu Hae-ran identified Japan as a strong contender for the championship.

Choi Hye-jin explained, "Japan has many courses similar to those in Korea, so Japanese players will be familiar with the greens. Also, Japanese players have been in good form recently."

Yu Hae-ran also agreed, stating, "The turf is also similar to what is common in Japan. The greens have some undulations, so Japanese players who are good at putting will show their strengths in this tournament."

The tournament will feature 8 teams divided into two groups for a round-robin stage, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the semifinals.

South Korea is in Group B along with Japan, Sweden, and the World Team. In Group A, the United States, Australia, Thailand, and China will compete.

The group stage will be played in a four-ball format, where each player plays their own ball and the better score counts as the team score.

From the semifinals onwards, the competition will consist of one foursomes match (where two players alternate hitting the same ball) and two single match-play games. Yonhap News