May 13, 2026

The 2026 Sun Flower & TPGA Championship with a total prize money of NT$7 million is scheduled to be held at the Taiwan Golf Club from May 14 to May 17 for a four-round 72-hole competition. 150 professional players from 8 countries are participating in this grand event to compete for the champion's prize of NT$1.5 million and the championship trophy; Shen Wei-cheng is seeking to defend his title. Hung Chien-yao, who was the runner-up for two consecutive years in 2023 and 2024 and tied for third last year, is also making every effort to seek his seventh individual title in the history of the tournament.

This prestigious tournament with a long history is in its 59th edition this year. It is co-hosted by Sun Flower Cotton Industrial Co., Ltd., the Sun Flower Cotton Charity and Education Foundation, and the TPGA. The co-organizer is the Taiwan Golf Club, which has a 107-year history.

The Sun Flower & TPGA Championship marks the 11th year that Sun Flower Cotton has title-sponsored this major domestic event. The total prize money is NT$7 million, with NT$1.5 million for the champion, NT$700,000 for the runner-up, and NT$380,000 for the third place.

The first round starts tomorrow, departing in two parts: morning and afternoon. The first group in the morning starts at 6:50, and the last group starts at 8:45. The first group in the afternoon tees off at 11:30, and the last group tees off at 13:35.

This major tournament is also the first Taiwan major of the TPGA Tour this year. The eligibility includes players ranked within the top 60 of the TPGA Tour prize money last year, past champions of Taiwan's four major tournaments, and the top 62 qualifiers from the TPGA Tour annual ranking qualifiers.

Since the first edition was held in 1966, the TPGA Championship was formerly known as one of Taiwan's three major tournaments along with the Taiwan Masters and the Taiwan Open. After the Taiwan Open was discontinued, it was replaced by the Yeangder TPC Championship, while the TPGA Championship has maintained its tradition and remains one of the three major tournaments in Taiwan today.

This also marks the third year since the founder of Sun Flower Cotton Industrial Co., Ltd., Chairman Shih Chun-yi, passed away after the 2023 Sun Flower & TPGA Championship. For these three years, his children have jointly upheld the late chairman's last wishes and continued the title sponsorship of this historic international event.

The pre-tournament press conference and Pro-Am were held today at the Taiwan Golf Club. 40 professional players and more than 100 social amateurs were paired to swing together in a New Scramble format. Although it started raining in the afternoon, most professional and amateur social players still worked hard to complete eighteen holes. In the end, professional player Tsai Tsung-yu and three social amateurs worked together to win the Pro-Am championship with a 9-under-par 63. Each of the three social amateurs received a HONMA BERES BLACK 2nd generation hybrid club.

Shih Chen-fei, Executive Director of the Sun Flower Cotton Charity and Education Foundation, stated at the press conference that besides thanking the TPGA and the Taiwan Golf Club for jointly participating in organizing this competition, the fact that it has been held at the Taiwan Golf Club for 7 consecutive years, Sun Flower has title-sponsored this major event for 11 consecutive years, and the TPGA Championship is in its 59th edition, is all due to long-term persistence. Just as her late father taught them during his lifetime: "Do the right thing better. To this day, we follow our father's original heart and continue to fulfill his last wishes."

Chen Yen-hao, Chairman of the Taiwan Golf Club, Wong Chau-shi, Founder and Honorary Chairman of the Mercuries Group, Kuo Tsung-tai, the tournament's Chief Referee, and Chen Jung-hsing, Chairman of the TPGA, all attended the pre-tournament press conference today.

The love for golf of Chairman Shih Chun-yi, the founder of Sun Flower Cotton Industrial Co., Ltd., was unparalleled; he played for 52 years. Such unwavering passion came from his persistent attitude toward everything. During the years affected by the global pandemic, many events were canceled, but the founder continued to support the TPGA, holding the Sun Flower & TPGA Championship, and even held the Sun Flower Junior Dream Cup Invitational to provide young players with more stages for practice and performance. Since 2022, it has been held for four consecutive years and has been included in the World Amateur Golf Ranking system since last year.

Sun Flower is a group-style operation. In addition to Sun Flower Cotton, affiliated enterprises include: Sun Flower Living Pavilion, Sun Flower Senior Living Pavilion, Sun Flower Gas Station, Sun Flower Japanese Cuisine, as well as the Sun Flower Foundation in charge of public welfare activities, and the Sun Flower Cotton Cultural Museum that explains the history of the sock industry. Among them, the Sun Flower Foundation takes "taking from society, giving back to society" as its core philosophy, investing in education, culture, sports, and public welfare charity for a long time.

This year, the TPGA continues to have many foreign players who passed the TPGA Tour qualifiers, including Asian Tour players, participating in the TPGA Tour. The competition is becoming more internationalized. The sponsoring organizers also hope that through this competition and healthy competition, it will stimulate the growth of Taiwanese players so they can move toward the international stage.

In this year's TPGA Tour major, there are 56 foreign players from eight countries including Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, the USA, and Thailand, and 94 Taiwanese players gathered together to show their skills; among them, 36 Japanese players are the most numerous.

Hung Chien-yao won the TPGA Championship six times in 2013, from 2017 to 2019, and in 2021 and 2022. He achieved a three-peat from 2017 to 2019. After his four-peat attempt was interrupted by Yeh Yu-chen in 2020, he won the championship for two consecutive years again. He was the runner-up in 2023 and 2024 and tied for third last year. This year, he is once again challenging the record for a seventh title; he has already been crowned king five times in the TPGA Championship under the title sponsorship of Sun Flower.

Chang Wei-lun finished tied for fourth in the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open last week, being the best-ranked Taiwanese player. He is in good form and continues to seek the championship this week. Local home club player Yeh Yu-chen is seeking to be crowned for the second time.

Among the foreign players, Thailand's Tawit Polthai, last year's Asian Development Tour (ADT) money leader, and his compatriot Suteepat Prateeptienchai, who was the 2024 TPGA Tour money leader and is currently working hard on the Asian Tour, possess strength to compete for the championship that cannot be ignored.

The TPGA Championship has been held at the Taiwan Golf Club 17 times, and this year is the 7th consecutive year. The total length of the course is 6,923 yards. Narrow fairways, rough areas, elevated greens, and the interpretation of grass grain are all highly challenging.

After the two rounds of the official competition, the top 60 players with the best scores will advance to the final two rounds.

The tournament also provides special awards as follows:

Hole-in-One Award: 8th Hole – ThreeBond provides a prize of NT$100,000 to the first person to hit a hole-in-one during the four rounds of the official competition. 10th Hole – In memory of the founder of Sun Flower Cotton, Chairman Shih Chun-yi, Sun Flower Cotton sponsors a hole-in-one prize of NT$200,000 to the first person to hit a hole-in-one during the four rounds of the official competition.

17th Hole – Eastern Watch Co. provides a Bell & Ross watch with a market value of NT$130,000. It will be awarded to the first person to hit a hole-in-one during the four rounds of the official competition. Daan Group provides a Presidential Suite at the Lishan Guest House for a one-night free stay during the four rounds of the official competition, regardless of the hole, number of people, or whether it is a weekday or holiday. Four par-3 holes (2nd, 8th, 10th, 17th) – The course provides a prize of NT$20,000.

Course Record Breaking Award (Record held at 63 strokes – Lin Wen-hong) – NT$100,000 provided by Chen Yen-hao, Chairman of the Taiwan Golf Club.

The tournament will provide free sports protection services during the final two rounds on 5/16 and 5/17.

This event is open to spectators. Before entering the course, please go to the "Tournament Service Desk" at the front entrance of the clubhouse to fill in basic information and exchange for a spectator pass. Attach it to a clearly visible position on your body before entering the course. Spectators please walk on the cart paths, do not enter the fairways, keep a safe distance, and pay attention to your own safety. During the watch, please turn your mobile phone to silent or vibration, and keep quiet when players tee off. Spectators are prohibited from riding golf carts while moving; the course does not provide shuttle service between holes. For safety considerations, it is recommended that children under six years old and pets do not enter the course to watch.

The final two rounds of this competition from 5/16 to 5/17 will be broadcast live online. The live broadcast is expected to start at 10:30 AM. This year's broadcasting platforms include the TPGA Facebook and YouTube, where you can watch the exciting competition process simultaneously. Related competition news can also be kept track of through the TPGA official website, LINE platform-Golfourit, LINE Today, and Yahoo Sports.