Three South Korean Players Advance in Seoul for First Time in 42 Years

Three South Korean women reached the second round of the Korea Open in Seoul this week, a national milestone at WTA level not matched since 1984, according to the tour. Back Dayeon won on 21 September, and Park Sohyun and Ku Yeonwoo followed on 22 September. All three entered as wild cards, and Park and Ku earned their first tour-level victories.

Back beat Yuan Yue 6-3, 4-6, 6-1. Park defeated Robin Montgomery 7-6(4), 6-3, while Ku beat qualifier Alevtina Ibragimova 6-3, 6-2. The earlier three-player mark came at a 1984 tournament in Rio de Janeiro, where three South Koreans reached the second round. At the Korea Open itself, which joined the WTA calendar in 2004, two home players had reached that stage together in 2013 and 2023.

A wild card is entry to the main draw without relying solely on ranking or qualifying results. In this case, the invitations gave local players the chance to face tour-level opposition at home, but the milestone came from winning those matches. Ku’s rise into the top 200 after a strong 2025 lower-tier season and Back’s run of titles earlier this year also show that the results have development behind them, rather than appearing from nowhere.

The next round will be a stiffer test against seeded opponents: Park faces Lanlana Tararudee, Back meets Maya Joint and Ku plays Elena-Gabriela Ruse. The three first-round wins establish a historical entry in Seoul. Whether anyone reaches the quarterfinals is still to be decided on court.