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By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, April 21 (Yonhap) -- The first major tournament of the 2026 LPGA season will tee off in Houston this week, with South Korean stars chasing a breakthrough on the sport's biggest stage.

The Chevron Championship will be contested at the par-72 Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston from Thursday to Sunday. World No. 3 Kim Hyo-joo will lead the contingent of 18 South Korean players, joined by former major champions Ko Jin-young, Amy Yang and Chun In-gee. They will vie for the winner's prize of US$1.2 million.

Kim Hyo-joo of South Korea kisses the champion's trophy after winning the Ford Championship on Cattail Course at Whirlwind Golf Club in Phoenix on March 29, 2026, in this Associated Press photo. (Yonhap)

South Korean players won three of the four majors played in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, when one major, the Evian Championship, was canceled. Since then, however, South Korea didn't produce an LPGA major champion in 2021, 2023 and 2025, and had one winner each in 2022 and 2024.

Yang is the most recent major champion, as the winner of the 2024 KPMG Women's PGA Championship.

South Korean players have enjoyed a strong season so far in 2026. Lee Mi-hyang and Kim Hyo-joo won three straight tournaments in March, with Kim, the highest-ranked South Korean at No. 3, winning in consecutive weeks to close out the month. Then over the weekend, Kim Sei-young and Im Jin-hee battled Hannah Green in a playoff at the JM Eagle LA Championship before falling short in the sudden-death affair.

Kim Hyo-joo, who also has a third-place finish this season, leads the tour in the Player of the Year points standings with 69, three ahead of world No. 2 Nelly Korda. But Kim was forced to withdraw from the LA Championship before the second round due to a neck injury.

Kim Sei-young of South Korea tees off on the fifth hole during the final round of the JM Eagle LA Championship at El Caballero Country Club in Los Angeles on April 19, 2026, in this Associated Press photo. (Yonhap)

Kim was involved in a record five-player playoff at last year's Chevron Championship, where Mao Saigo of Japan held off Kim, Yin Ruoning, Ariya Jutanugarn and Lindy Duncan for the title.

Provided that she is healthy enough to compete, Kim will go for her second career major this week.

Chun will complete a Career Grand Slam with a win in Houston, having already captured the U.S. Women's Open, KPMG Women's PGA Championship and Amundi Evian Championship. The LPGA has five majors and a player who wins four different majors out of that five is recognized with a Career Grand Slam.

Chun has only played three times this season and finished fifth at the Ford Championship in March.

Ko has been slow out of the gate this season, with no top-10s in her four starts. She has broken 70 in just two of her 16 rounds so far and has tumbled down the world rankings from No. 26 at the start of 2026 to No. 43.

Kim Sei-young and Im will both look to bounce back after their playoff loss Sunday in Los Angeles.

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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