BMW Ladies Championship returns to Pine Beach Golf Links next week
BMW Group Korea organises the only LPGA event in South Korea,
featuring a world-class field
All-electric BMW iX3 and BMW i7 are the 2026 Hole-in-One Vehicles
Quotes from defending champion Sei Young Kim (KOR) and Solheim Cup
winner Esther Henseleit (GER)
Gwangju/Munich. Golf is hugely popular in South Korea,
and many of the country’s golfers have established themselves among
the best in the world. As such, there is great anticipation ahead of
the sixth edition of the BMW Ladies Championship, which takes place
from 22nd to 25th October 2026. The only tournament on the Ladies
Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour in South Korea will, as it
was last year, be played at Pine Beach Golf Links near Gwangju, in the
southwest of the country. The facility allows a spectacular layout,
consisting of the front nine holes from the Pine Course and the back
nine from the Beach Course, including many holes right on the coast.
Last year’s winner, Sei Young Kim (KOR), is back to defend her title:
“Winning the BMW Ladies Championship in my homeland was a wonderful
feeling, and one that I hope to repeat. I will do my best, although
competition at this event is unbelievably strong. That speaks volumes
of the quality of the BMW Ladies Championship, which boasts one of the
highest quality fields on the LPGA outside the USA. Whatever happens,
I am really looking forward to my home tournament, the South Korean
fans, and a week that is truly extraordinary, thanks to BMW.”
The defending champion, currently ranked number nine in the world,
will have to overcome a further three top-ten players if she is to
successfully defend her title: Haeran Ryu (KOR, No. 3) Hyo Joo Kim
(KOR, No. 4) and Lottie Woad (ENG, No. 7). Also teeing off will be
Australian Minjee Lee (No. 16), another former BMW Ladies Champion,
who won the tournament in 2023.
The only German in the field is Olympic silver medallist Esther
Henseleit. The 27-year-old is also excited about the tournament: “I
always very much look forward to playing at the BMW Ladies
Championship. The organisation, set-up and quality of the tournament
are excellent, as we have become accustomed to at BMW golf events for
decades. Unfortunately, that is not always the case for us ladies,
which makes us appreciate this tournament all the more. As a player,
you feel particularly welcome and at home here. Plus, I really enjoy
playing in South Korea. The fans are an experience, and with so many
Korean players on the Tour, there is a special atmosphere at the BMW
Ladies Championship – that all makes it a real pleasure.”
The 68-strong field also includes 15 golfers from the Korean LPGA,
who will go up against the best in the world for the full four rounds:
there is no cut at the BMW Ladies Championship.
This also means that all players have up to eight attempts to win one
of the two Hole-in-One Awards, and with it the joy of all-electric
driving. The first player to ace the 13th hole will receive the new
BMW i7. The first hole-in-one on the 15th will be rewarded with the
first model in the Neue Klasse, the BMW iX3.
In the history of the BMW Ladies Championship, four players have
earned a Hole-in-One Vehicle. The first to do so was Kristen Gillman
during the inaugural event in 2019. The American hit the first ace of
her professional career to win a BMW 740Li XDrive. At the 2022 BMW
Ladies Championship, fans celebrated two Hole-in-One Awards being won
on the same day: Na Yeon Choi from South Korea won a BMW X7 xDrive40i,
while Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn headed home with a BMW 740i. Last
year, Lucy Li from the USA won a BMW i7 eDrive50 in the opening round.
The inaugural BMW Ladies Championship took place in 2019 at LPGA
International Busan in the southeast of the country, and the same
venue hosted the second edition of the event two years later. In 2022,
the golfers teed off at Oak Valley Country Club in the north of South
Korea. The Seowon Valley Country Club, roughly an hour’s drive from
the capital Seoul, hosted the tournament in 2023 and 2024. Since then,
the tournament has been played at Pine Beach Golf Links in the
southwest of the country. The advantage of changing venue is that the
organisers, BMW Group Korea, can present the world-class golfers to
the many golf fans all over the country.
The BMW Golfsport Engagement.
For almost four decades, BMW has played a leading role as a reliable
partner of global golf – both at the amateur and professional levels.
As title partner of prestigious golf events, BMW is active on four
continents. Since 1989, the premium automobile manufacturer has hosted
the iconic BMW International Open (DP World Tour) in
its hometown of Munich, Germany. The BMW PGA
Championship in London, UK – the flagship event of the DP
World Tour – has, with BMW’s support since 2005, developed into a
“Festival of Golf” and a highlight of the British sporting calendar.
With the BMW Australian PGA Championship the company
supports another prestigious tournament, which is rich in tradition.
In the USA, BMW has been the title partner of the BMW
Championship since 2007. First played in 1899 as the Western
Open, this tournament is now the penultimate playoff event of the PGA
TOUR Playoffs and one of the most competitive golf tournaments
worldwide. It has been named PGA TOUR Tournament of the Year six times.
On the world’s most important women’s tour, BMW has hosted
the BMW Ladies Championship – the only LPGA Tour
event in South Korea – since 2019. BMW has also been organizing the
BMW Golf Cup since 1987, the largest international
tournament series for amateur players, who can qualify for the
international World Final at more than 800 qualifying tournaments worldwide.