Top LPGA Players Face Fines For Missing Season Opener
Minjee Lee and Jin Young Ko could be fined $25,000 for missing the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions


Two of the world’s top five are facing fines of $25,000 for missing this week’s LPGA Tour season opener, the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, per a Golfweek report.
World No.3 Minjee Lee and World No.5 Jin Young Ko are about to fall foul of the LPGA 1-in-4 requirement that states that players in the top 80 of the CME points list have to participate in a domestic tournament every four years - a stipulation that holds until a player has completed 230 official LPGA events, after which the player is exempt for the remainder of her career.
The tournament, which features a 30-player field, begins this week, with neither Australian Lee nor Korean Ko in it, although the latter had originally intended to play the tournament before withdrawing. To play in the Florida tournament, the pair would face the daunting prospect of trips around the world given their respective home countries.
After the Florida opener, the season’s second tournament doesn’t begin until over a month later. Importantly, that event, the Honda LPGA Thailand, marks the start of the Tour’s three-tournament Asian Swing, making it far easier for the pair to attend. Other potential reasons that have persuaded the pair to opt out of playing could be Ko’s wrist injury, which she sustained at the end of last season, and Lee’s hectic schedule that saw her compete as recently as last month in the ISPS Handa Australian Open.
The 1-in-4 rule was originally devised to protect sponsors, and both Lee and Ko can apply for their one-time exemption from the tournament should they choose to do so. Meanwhile, the VP of Tour Operations for the LPGA, Tommy Tangtiphaiboontana, confirmed that both players could appeal the fines.
World No.2 Nelly Korda is the highest-ranked player in the tournament, which begins at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club on 19 January.
Get the Golf Monthly Newsletter
Subscribe to the Golf Monthly newsletter to stay up to date with all the latest tour news, equipment news, reviews, head-to-heads and buyer’s guides from our team of experienced experts.
Mike has over 25 years of experience in journalism, including writing on a range of sports throughout that time, such as golf, football and cricket. Now a freelance staff writer for Golf Monthly, he is dedicated to covering the game's most newsworthy stories.
He has written hundreds of articles on the game, from features offering insights into how members of the public can play some of the world's most revered courses, to breaking news stories affecting everything from the PGA Tour and LIV Golf to developmental Tours and the amateur game.
Mike grew up in East Yorkshire and began his career in journalism in 1997. He then moved to London in 2003 as his career flourished, and nowadays resides in New Brunswick, Canada, where he and his wife raise their young family less than a mile from his local course.
Kevin Cook’s acclaimed 2007 biography, Tommy’s Honour, about golf’s founding father and son, remains one of his all-time favourite sports books.
-
Finally! Rory McIlroy's New Nike Shoes Have Arrived And Here Is How You Can Get Them
After months of waiting, the latest Victory Tour shoes have gone on sale, and here I have detailed how you can get a pair.
By Sam Tremlett Published
-
Valero Texas Open 2025 Picks, Predictions And Odds
The last event before The Masters takes place at the Valero Texas Open, where there is one final spot available for the first men's Major of 2025
By Matt Cradock Published
-
Augusta National Women's Amateur 2025 Picks, Odds And Predictions
The Augusta National Women's Amateur returns for a sixth time, and many of the leading female players from all over the world will do battle in Georgia
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
T-Mobile Match Play Prize Money Payout 2025
Nelly Korda defends her title as a field of 64 competes for an eye-catching purse at Nevada’s Shadow Creek Golf Club
By Mike Hall Published
-
'I Left Actually A Good Four Shots Out There' - Charley Hull Shoots Career Best LPGA Round But Had A 59 On Her Mind
Charley Hull felt a 59 was on the cards as she shot a career-best 63 at the Ford Championship, but came off the course feeling she'd left at least four shots out there
By Paul Higham Published
-
Charley Hull Makes Driver Change Ahead Of Ford Championship 63
The World No.10 moved into the new TaylorMade Qi35 LS ahead of this week's Ford Championship in Arizona, where she got off to a fast start
By Elliott Heath Published
-
Champions Retreat Golf Club: ANWA Course Designed By Golf's 'Big Three' Legends
Take a closer look at Champions Retreat GC, just 15 miles from Augusta National with a unique design by golfing legends Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer
By Paul Higham Published
-
How To Qualify For The Augusta National Women’s Amateur
The Augusta National Women's Amateur is one of the jewels of the women's game, but how do players qualify?
By Paul Higham Published
-
Ford Championship Prize Money Payout 2025
It's the second Ford Championship this week on the LPGA Tour, where there's a $2.25m prize pot up for grabs
By Elliott Heath Published
-
'Shocked' Mimi Rhodes Claims First LET Victory In Fourth Start After Helpful Swing Change
A winner of the 2023 NCAA D1 Women's Golf Championship and the 2024 Curtis Cup claimed her second pro success at the Women's NSW Open on Sunday
By Jonny Leighfield Published