The 2026 Hwacheon Sancheoneo National Park Golf Festival kicks off a month-long run on the 18th. About 3,200 park golf enthusiasts from across the country have completed their applications, and the event is expected to draw around 4,000 people when staff and officials are included, making it a large-scale competition.
The Hwacheon County Sports Council said on the 4th that it will hold a total of eight preliminary rounds from the 18th to the 19th of next month at the Sanae Park Golf Course and the Hwacheon Sports Park Golf Course. Matches for the men's and women's general divisions will be held at the Sanae Park Golf Course, while the men's and women's senior division matches will take place at the Hwacheon Sports Park Golf Course.
The finals, in which players who advance from the preliminaries will compete, will run for four days from September 15 to 18 at the No. 1 and No. 2 courses of the Hwacheon Sancheoneo Park Golf Course.
The total prize money amounts to 122.4 million won. The male and female MVPs will each receive 30 million won in prize money, a pure gold embossed trophy, and a green jacket. Winners in the four categories — the men's and women's general divisions and senior divisions — will each receive 5 million won, with 3 million won for runners-up and 2 million won for third place, along with additional event awards for each category.
The county also expects the competition to boost the local economy. Entry fees are 30,000 won for the preliminaries and 60,000 won for the finals, and will be fully refunded in the form of Hwacheon Love gift certificates and local farm products.
"We will further expand sports marketing so that the local economy can find new momentum for growth through park golf," Hwacheon County Governor Kim Se-hun said.
