Just ₩176.9m separates KLPGA money leaders before S-OIL Championship — and the winner earns ₩180m

On October 26, three days before the 20th S-OIL Championship, the KLPGA money race presents a striking numerical contrast. Kim Min-sol leads the season earnings list with ₩1,590,079,428, while Seo Gyo-rim is second on ₩1,413,216,000. The gap is ₩176,863,428. First prize at this week's event is ₩180 million. That does not mean one win automatically changes the rankings: the amount earned by both players matters. It does, however, put the Jeju event in perspective.

The event: four rounds on Jeju Island

The KLPGA lists the 20th S-OIL Championship for October 29–November 1, 2026, at Elysian Jeju, South Korea. The tournament uses the Lake nine as the outward half and Pine nine as the inward half. Its official specifications are par 72, 6,924 yards, and a 72-hole stroke-play format. An official practice day is scheduled for October 27 and the pro-am for October 28.

The overall purse is ₩1 billion. The official prize-distribution schedule awards ₩180 million for first, ₩110 million for second, and ₩80 million for third. Ties are handled under the published KLPGA allocation rules, while a playoff winner receives the first-place amount.

A money lead and a points deficit

Kim Min-sol's earnings advantage over Seo Gyo-rim is precisely ₩176,863,428. The winner's cheque exceeds that gap by just ₩3,136,572. It is therefore misleading to say a Seo victory would necessarily put her top: Kim's own finishing position and payout would also have to be considered.

Interestingly, the order reverses in the separate Daesang (Player of the Year) points race. The official KLPGA standings show Seo on 563 points and Kim on 525, a 38-point advantage for Seo. The money list, Daesang standings and K-Ranking are different competitions; readers should not assume that leading one means leading all three.

The contrast extends to scoring averages. Official seasonal statistics give Seo 70.6405 strokes per round and Kim 70.7895. Their consistency helps explain why the financial gap and the points race both matter with only a small number of events left.

Defending champion, leaderboard and next steps

The KLPGA identifies Go Ji-won as the defending S-OIL champion. As of October 26, this year's tournament has not started. There is no opening-round score or 2026 S-OIL leaderboard to report yet; the final entry list and pairings should be checked again before play begins.

The most recent completed regular KLPGA tournament was the Iceberg Golf · Seoul Shinmun Open, October 16–18. According to the official association report, Ma Seo-young claimed her first title on the second playoff hole after completing regulation at four under par, 212. Those are the scores from the previous event, not a premature score for S-OIL.

The tour calendar also lists the Daebo HouseD Championship for November 6–8. S-OIL is therefore an important late-season opportunity, not the season's last event. Once play begins on October 29, the key figures to track are the payouts and Daesang points of Kim and Seo, alongside Go's title defence. Until then, the only confirmed information concerns the schedule, format, purse and existing standings.

Primary sources, reviewed October 26, 2026: official KLPGA tournament and prize table https://klpga.co.kr/web/tourInfo/tourInfo?gameCode=2026100001 ; official season standings, prior completed leaderboard and schedule https://klpga.co.kr/web/main/index .