Korean Golf Club seek a fresh start in front of their home fans

BUSAN, South Korea – Call it a fresh start. Call it a reset. Or just call it a much-needed opportunity to enjoy the warm embrace of supportive home fans while hoping to turn around their fortunes.

Whatever you call it, the Korean Golf Club couldn’t ask for a better time to return to their native land for this week’s LIV Golf Korea at Asiad Country Club.

It’s a tournament that new captain Byeong Hun An and his team have eagerly anticipated since the offseason rebranding that included a name change (from the previous Iron Heads GC), a new identity (with the White Tiger as their logo), and a roster overall (with An and fellow Koreans Minkyu Kim and Younghan Song signed as new full-time players).

There was enthusiasm entering the 2026 season, and the team opened with a couple of respectable eighth-place finishes in Riyadh and Adelaide in the 13-team league. Unfortunately, the results in the last five tournaments have been disappointing – four last-place finishes along with a solo 11th in Mexico City, with the club falling to the bottom of the season-long points standings.

“Our team has had a difficult season so far, so hopefully this can become the turning point for us,” said An, whose solo ninth in his LIV Golf debut in Riyadh remains the team’s only individual top-10 finish this season. “I’ve personally struggled a bit too, but at the end of the day, we’re all still rookies in LIV Golf. We want to use this week to change the momentum and carry that into the remaining events.”

Just like in any team sport when results are poor, shake-ups occur. In this case, it was a roster move, with KPGA (Korean) Tour points leader Doyeob Mun joining the team this week, filling the spot vacated by Danny Lee, who opted to become an independent Wild Card player.

Mun, a native of Seoul, will also at next week’s LIV Golf Andalucia. He comes in on a hot streak with five consecutive top-10 finishes, including a win earlier this month at the KPGA Gyeongbuk Open. He ranks 13th in points on the Asian Tour’s International Series points list.

“Watching LIV Golf on TV and social media, I always wanted to compete in it myself,” Mun said. “I’m very grateful for this opportunity and extremely excited for the tournaments ahead. I’m just going to go out there and enjoy it.”

Lee was the lone holdover from last year’s roster and the club’s only player to have ever lifted a LIV Golf trophy, thanks to his individual win in 2023 at LIV Golf Tucson.

He was never able to build on the momentum of that win, though, suffering an injury to his right wrist that required surgery and still impacts him now. “Apparently it’s kind of permanent damage that I’m going to have,” he said. “I just have to manage it.”

Of Lee’s seven starts in 2026, he’s finished outside the top 40 six times, including his WD in the final round in the most recent LIV Golf tournament in Virginia. He’s currently 55th in the points race.

An explained the move.

“Danny Lee is someone we all really care about, and this was a mutual decision made for everyone’s happiness,” An said. “He wasn’t pushed out or anything like that. The outcome came through discussions with LIV Golf and everyone involved, and we all genuinely want the best for each other. That’s why we came to this agreement, so honestly the atmosphere is still very good.

“Within the team, there’s no awkwardness at all. We’ve always had a good atmosphere, and even though this is a team competition, we still trust each player’s individual golf ability very much. Everyone here is already such a talented player that I don’t think I need to focus too much on team chemistry. Everyone just needs to play their own golf well.”

Just like the team he’s leaving, Lee looks forward to his own reset.

“This was a big decision for me,” he said after his Wednesday pro-am round. “It’s the best way for me and the Korean team to move forward.

“It’s less things for me to worry about. I’ve always wanted to do my thing instead of worry about other stuff. I’m actually happy where I’m at now. My game’s starting to come back. Showed some good signs in Virginia. It’s unfortunate that my wrist kind of gave up on me. But I’m feeling better right now and doing everything I can to finish the season.”

Lee said he understood the need for Korean Golf Club to be as competitive as possible, especially given their home country’s enthusiasm for the sport.

“LIV at this point, it’s a very important time, and I wish the best for LIV,” Lee said. “It’s one of the best tours on the planet and I hope it keeps going. In order to succeed, the team thing needs to thrive, and Korean is one of the important teams, I believe.”

But the Koreans need to start being competitive. And to do that, they’ll need to avoid the slow starts that have plagued them this season.

With all four scores counting for each team in every round, Korean’s 9 over total in the seven opening rounds in 2026 ranks as the worst cumulative total by any team for any round. Compare it to their totals in the other three rounds: 22 under in Rd. 2, 42 under in Rd. 3 and 25 under in Rd. 4.

On average, Korean GC has found itself more than 15 strokes behind after Rd. 1. In Adelaide, they were 19 strokes behind Rd. 1 leaders 4Aces GC. In Singapore, they were 25 strokes behind Rd. 1 leaders Legion XIII. Most recently in Virginia, they were 19 strokes behind Ripper GC after the first round

Only once has Korean GC even been inside the top half of the leaderboard after the opening round. That happened in Mexico City, when they sat solo sixth at 2 under, seven shots behind Legion XIII. The next day, they moved into a tie for third at 3 under but saw their deficit increase to 22 strokes after a dominant Legion performance.

Having to constantly play catch-up after the first day has been exhausting. Kim, who is a cumulative 15 over in the opening round this season, acknowledged feeling tired in his pursuit of seeking solutions.

“For me, when things aren’t going well, I tend to practice even more,” he said. “When I’m not hitting the ball well, I personally believe practice is the answer, so even if my body feels tired, I try to keep working until I find the right feeling again. But honestly, that can become exhausting too sometimes.

“So, there are also times when I try to rest completely, while other times I practice more. I think I’m still searching for the best way to handle those difficult moments.”

Perhaps playing not only in front of supportive fans but on familiar soil this week will provide some comfort. Mun’s obviously playing well in his home country right now. An has won twice on the KPGA Tour. Kim is a two-time Korea Open winner.

Home course advantage on the Rees Jones layout could be a factor, according to An.

“Definitely some advantages for us,” said the Korean captain. “It’s what I’d call a very typical Korean-style grass and golf course setup. Most KPGA events and Korean golf courses use very similar grass types, so that familiarity definitely helps us understand the course better.

“Even if players are hitting to similar spots, I think we can have an advantage in areas like distance control and short-game shots around the greens. This kind of Korean-style course should also suit the rest of our team well. … Different grass types can make things much more difficult for players who aren’t used to them.”

Having the home advantage has paid off big for the all-Australian Ripper GC, who have won twice in Adelaide, including in February this season. A month later, the all-South African Southern Guards GC came within one shot of winning in LIV Golf’s first trip to South Africa.

The Korean Golf Club is hoping to follow that same path. “We’ve seen other teams perform well at their home events,” An said, “so naturally we’re hoping for the same.”

In the meantime, their former teammate now becomes their biggest supporter.

“I wish all the best for Korean for the rest of the season and especially this week,” Lee said. “I hope they do something special in front of the Korean fans.”