The '2026 GOLFZON China Open,' with a total prize pool of 4.25 billion won, saw South Korean professional golfers Ha Seung-bin and Lee Jun-hee share first place in the domestic preliminary round.

*This content was translated by AI.

The domestic preliminary round of the mammoth-screen golf tournament, with a total prize pool of 4.25 billion won, has concluded.

GOLFZON Co., Ltd. (CEO Park Kang-soo) announced on the 5th that it successfully concluded the domestic preliminary round of the global screen golf tournament '2026 GOLFZON China Open.' This year's domestic preliminary round attracted approximately 20,000 golfers, including 4,461 professionals and 15,523 amateurs, surpassing 40,000 rounds played, making it a large-scale screen golf event.

The global screen golf tour '2026 GOLFZON CHINA OPEN,' with a total prize pool of 20 million yuan (approximately 4.25 billion won) and a first-place prize of 5 million yuan (approximately 1.05 billion won), is open to professional and amateur golfers worldwide across regions including China, Asia (excluding Korea and China), the Americas, and Europe. Preliminary and final rounds will be held online and offline in each region, with the final round scheduled for December at the City Golf venue in China. The domestic preliminary round ran for approximately three months from March 10 to May 31.

In the Korean professional preliminary round, top stars of the domestic screen golf tour GTOUR participated in a fierce competition. Lee Jun-hee, with one career GTOUR win, and Ha Seung-bin, the 2024 GTOUR Rookie of the Year, finished tied for first place. Park Chan-hee, also with one career GTOUR win, placed third. Lee Yong-hee, a 2025 Grand Prize winner known for his skill and showmanship, tied for fourth with Hagi Won, who secured seven wins. Lee Jeong-woong, who has a large fanbase due to his performances in various GOLFZON content and GTOUR, and Gong Taehyun also qualified for the final round by placing within the rankings.

The 'GOLFZON China Open' is a mixed-gender event, where female professionals also stood out. Shim Ji-yeon, with eight career WGTOUR wins, tied for sixth place. Jimin, known as the AlphaGo of the screen golf world, tied for 14th place with Song Han-baek, who is called the screen AI. Lee Seong-hoon, who leads the season's Grand Prize and prize money rankings, finished the preliminary round with a strong eighth-place tie alongside WGTOUR powerhouses Park Dan-yu and Hong Hyun-ji.

Competition for advancing to the final round was even fiercer in the amateur category. A total of 15,523 members participated, with over 30,000 rounds played. As a result, the member with the GOLFZON nickname Daejeon Tanbangjoie recorded a total of 38-under par (19-under on both A Course Mission Hills-Blackstone (18 holes, Par 73) and B Course Mission Hills-World Cup (18 holes, Par 72)) from the early stages of the tournament, tying for first place with the member nicknamed Oncheon!!v.i.p. Following them, Golf King Jaeseo and the member Mijin Hwangso tv tied for third place, while Larry Pink and the member Masakki tied for fifth place. With the professional first-place finishers Lee Jun-hee and Ha Seung-bin shooting 33-under par, five strokes behind the amateur first-place record of 38-under, a key point of interest is whether Korean amateur golfers will fully showcase the skills they have honed through screen golf in this '2026 GOLFZON China Open.'

Through this preliminary round, qualification for the final round was granted to a total of 300 participants (200 professionals and 100 amateurs). The final round is scheduled to be held offline at the GOLFZON City Golf Yanji location in China in two separate sessions in July and August. The final round will also be divided into professional and amateur categories, played in a two-round stroke play format, with 20 participants selected to advance to the ultimate final.

Notably, the Korean final round scheduled for July will feature numerous prominent professional golfers from the KPGA and KLPGA first divisions, aiming to enhance the competitiveness of the global screen golf tour and share its appeal with many golfers and fans. Participating players include Kim Hong-taek, who holds the GTOUR record for most wins and has three first-division tour victories including major tournaments; Im Jin-young, winner of the 2026 KLPGA opening tournament, the Revyuan Championship; and Cho Ah-yeon, a professional and the youngest former national team representative. Additionally, Kim Bi-o, Kim Han-byul, Jung Chan-min, who have been active in the KPGA, and Song Min-hyeok, who recorded his first career win in the 2026 season, are expected to participate, promising intense competition.

The '2026 GOLFZON CHINA OPEN' will proceed with regional final rounds in Korea, China, and other areas through August, culminating in the final championship from December 17 to 20 at GOLFZON City Golf in China. Additionally, to promote the appeal of the screen golf tour held at urban-style golf courses called City Golf, it will be broadcast worldwide.

GOLFZON's New Business Division Son Jang-sun (Head) stated, "We will successfully host a true global screen golf tournament where golfers from around the world gather in front of GOLFZON simulators for the final and championship rounds."

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*This content was translated by AI.