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The 19th edition of the women's tournament at the Korea Open will start on October 9.
Russia's Ekaterina Alexandrova won last year's tournament in Seoul, dropping just one set en route to the title victory. She will be playing in the 2023 edition of the tournament and will be joined by a few top players in the women's singles draw.
What is the Korea Open?
The Korea Open is a outdoor hard-court tournament that is a part of the WTA 250 series. The inaugural edition of the women's singles competition at the event took place in 2004 and was won by then-teenager Maria Sharapova.
Several top players like Venus Williams, Caroline Wozniacki, Agnieszka Radwanska and Karolina Pliskova, among some other names, have also triumphed in Seoul since then.
It is pertinent to note that the tournament was not held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was briefly relegated to WTA 125 status the following year. It returned to being a 250-level event last year.
Venue
The Seoul Olympic Park Tennis Center is the venue for the WTA 250 tournament.
Players
The WTA 250 event in Seoul promises to provide a lot of entertainment, if the top seeds are anything to go by.
World No. 4 Jessica Pegula and 2017 titlist Jelena Ostapenko spearhead the field at the 2023 Korea Open as the top two seeds. Both players have put together a great season in their own right.
Pegula has compiled a 50-16 win-loss record on the main tour thus far, the highlights of which include clinching a career-second WTA 1000 title in Montreal. Ostapenko, meanwhile, has displayed remarkable consistency this year at the big tournaments, and will be pushing for a top 10 finish in the year-end rankings.
2022 winner Ekaterina Alexandrova and World No. 30 Marie Bouzkova will round out the top four seeds in Seoul. The likes of Sofia Kenin, Alycia Parks, Lesia Tsurenko and Arantxa Rus will also be seeded at the 250-level event.
Schedule
The main draw action will start on October 9 with first-round matches in the women's singles event. The quarterfinals are scheduled to be held on October 13, while the semifinals are set to be played on October 14. The championship match, meanwhile, will take place on October 15.
Prize Money
The total prize pool for the women's singles event at the 2023 Korea Open is $259,303. The champion will pocket $34,228 in prize money winnings.
Prize money breakdown will be provided when available.
Where to watch Korea Open 2023
Viewers in the US, Australia, UK and Canada can watch the 2023 Korea Open live on the following channels and sites:
USA: All matches will be broadcast on Tennis Channel.
UK: Fans in the UK can watch the proceedings at the WTA 250 event live on Amazon Prime Video.
Australia: All matches will be telecast on beIN Sports.
Canada: Viewers in Canada can watch all the matches on TSN.
