Is 2025 all about a shift in the golfing world? Well, it looks like so because after the PGA Tour, LIV Golf, and TGL, it’s now the LPGA that is shaking things up. And this time, it’s not around announcing the biggest prize purse but introducing a whole new format in an LPGA event.

We are talking about the 11-year-old International Crown. According to the new reports, the International Series has announced a twist in its 5th edition format, taking place at the New Korea Country Club. And fans are excited to see who will take home the title this time, after Thailand last time (2023).

All you need to know about the new format 

For the first time in its 11-year history, there will be a World Team competing alongside seven other country teams. This World Team will consist of four of the top-ranked golfers from the Rolex Rankings, and they will represent four regions: the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa/Oceania.

Spoiler alert! You are most welcome to expect some big names on the greens of the Republic of Korea. For instance, Lydia Ko from New Zealand, who’s currently ranked No. 3, and France’s Celine Boutier at No. 9, among others. Over the first three days, teams will compete in a fourball match play. This will ultimately lead to the final round featuring singles. But, how do teams get chosen? 

To be considered for this highly anticipated event in October this year, a country needs to have at least four players ranked in the system. Interestingly, based on the current standings, the United States, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, Australia, Sweden, and China are all in strong positions. Whereas, on the other hand, England, Germany, and France are keeping a close eye on the rankings, hoping they can sneak their way out into the top seven.

But here’s the catch, according to the new format, the selection will ultimately depend on the combined Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings of the top four players from each country. And guess what? It looks like some interesting matches are coming up even before the International Crown as the Rolex ranking will be finalized after the 2025 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship on June 23. 

This is most beneficial for New Zealand, as the country, despite having rising star Lydia Ko, often struggles to meet the depth needed to qualify. But with the potential for change this year, it’ll be exciting to see if they can finally secure a spot. Keep an eye out for these rankings, folks! It’s going to be a thrilling lead-up to the event.

How does the game format work?

First off, teams get seeded from No. 1 to No. 8 based on the rankings. Once that’s done, they get split into two pools. This division happens based on the combined Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings of the four players on each team, and these rankings are revealed right after the 2025 AIG Women’s Open, which wraps up on August 4th.

During the competition, each country will play a couple of four-ball matches against the other three countries in their pool on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. After the three competitive days, the two countries with the highest points will move on to the final stage on Sunday.

In the International Crown, the players will be judged based on the total points the tied countries earned. Unfortunately, if that too doesn’t lead up to a solution, teams will be judged based on the total matches played by each country in all six of their four-ball matches. If that doesn’t clear up things either, then each country’s highest seedings would be looked at. After the dust settles, the highly anticipated semifinals will take place on Sunday morning.

What’s at stake for the winners?

Well, this LPGA event does not present itself with a purse as high as the CME Group Tour Championship, last year. But, it is better than what the Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown had in 2018. In 2018 the tournament featured itself with a $100,000 prize money for each winner. But this year their money game has gone up adding $25,000 to that amount.

This brings us to the winners getting a total of $125,000 each, summing up to $500,000. Interestingly, the amount is similar to last year, when Thailand snagged the title at the TPC Harding Park in San Francisco. But this time, things can get tough as we have an awaited list of top players from LPGA. Have you chosen your betting-winning side yet? let us know below!