The Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour has completed its first-half schedule and is now on a short break. With Kim Min-sol and Seo Kyo-rim leading the way with three wins and two wins respectively, the second half resumes on the 30th of this month.
Golf is an individual sport, but from the perspective of the companies sponsoring the players, it is also a team sport. The performance of an entire golf team amounts to that company's report card.
The A+ teams for the first half of 2026 are Samchully, Doosan E&C, Daebang E&C, and Medihill. The rankings are based on the number of wins, total prize money, and number of top-10 finishes. For the Doosan Match Play, the only match-play event, a quarterfinal appearance was counted as a top 10. "Of course a win has the biggest impact, but companies also consider top-10 finishes and making the cut important," a golf industry official said on the 19th.
Energy company Samchully claimed four wins in 16 events during the first half. Second-year player Seo Kyo-rim recorded two wins, while "sister golfers" Ko Ji-woo and Ko Ji-won added one each. Samchully also ranked a dominant first in top-10 finishes with a total of 30, 10 more than second-place Medihill. In team prize money, which counts only players ranked in the top 20 in prize money, Samchully also took first place with 1.82037 billion won. That amounts to a triple crown. The only two events in which no Samchully player finished in the top 10 were the NH Investment & Securities Ladies Championship and the Mercedes-Benz 40th Korea Women's Open.
As it happened, Kim Min-sol of Doosan E&C won the Korea Women's Open. Kim led in wins, prize money (about 984 million won), and Player of the Year points, essentially carrying Doosan E&C on her back. All three of the Doosan E&C golf team's wins came from Kim, and she alone accounted for 76% of the team's prize money (1.2953 billion won, second place). Kim accounted for five of the team's 11 top-10 finishes (tied for fourth), with Park Hye-jun (three), Lee Yul-lin (two), and Park Gyeol (one) chipping in. While A+ grades were given to four teams, among them Samchully and Doosan E&C dominated the first half as a one-two punch.
Daebang E&C stood out, ranking third in team prize money (1.18275 billion won) and tied for fourth in top-10 finishes (11), led by Kim Min-sun, who ranked first in top-10 finishes with one win, one runner-up, and one third-place finish, and by season-opener champion Lim Jin-young. Medihill had only one win (Lee Ye-won), but showed its strength with second place in top-10 finishes (20) and fourth in total prize money (1.0628 billion won). Although not counted in the tallies, there was also cause for celebration as Park Hyun-kyung won the Earth Mondahmin Cup, the Japan tour's largest prize-money event, imprinting the Medihill brand on the Japanese market.
In terms of win impact, three-win Lotte is on par with Samchully and Doosan E&C. Yoo Hyun-jo recorded one win, and LPGA Tour member Kim Hyo-joo took as many as two wins on her "domestic visit." However, Lotte's top-10 finishes were limited to eight, failing to place among the top five. As Kim Hyo-joo's main stage is the United States, her contribution in the top-10 category was inevitably low.
Among financial firms, NH Investment & Securities stood out. Having enjoyed a hot first half thanks to Park Min-ji's milestone of 20 career wins, NH Investment & Securities combined the efforts of Kim Si-hyun, Jung Yun-ji, and Lee Ga-young to produce third place in top-10 finishes (12).
KB Financial Group and Hana Financial Group saved face with one win each, but their presence was not significant with seven and one top-10 finishes respectively. This partly reflects a strategic shift of interest toward amateur prospects or overseas tour players.
Korea Land Trust, which signed last year's prize-money leader Hong Jung-min, and Rejuran, which brought in prize-money runner-up Noh Seung-hee, have failed to enjoy the effects of their signings, as both players have faltered this year. Hong has two top-10 finishes and ranks 41st in prize money, while Noh has four top-10 finishes and ranks 11th in prize money. Noh has been increasing her number of high finishes since May, giving reason to expect a rebound in the second half. Although Korea Land Trust's performance has been lackluster, its affiliate Dongbu Construction fared well with fifth place in top-10 finishes (10).
The strong showing of healthcare company Huons is also notable. Choi Ye-rim, whom the company signed this year, sits 10th in Player of the Year points on the strength of a runner-up finish, among others. The company's top-10 finishes number nine, more than Lotte (eight) and KB Financial Group (seven).
