Holmgren falls short in South Korea Challenger final but set for ranking rise
August Holmgren lost the Challenger final in Gwangju on Sunday morning, falling 4-6, 5-7 to South Korea’s Kwon Soon-woo.
Kwon, currently ranked 350th in the world, has seen his ranking drop in recent years due to injuries and mandatory military service. Five years ago, he reached a career-high ranking of 52 and is now working his way back up the standings. Victory on home soil is expected to lift him by around 100 places when the next rankings are released.
Despite the defeat, Holmgren will still benefit from his run to the final, which should move him up to approximately 163rd in the world rankings.
The Dane was broken early at 1-2 in the first set and struggled to create any immediate response. In the second set, both players held serve until late in the set. At 5-4, Holmgren earned his first break point—also a set point—but was unable to convert it.
Kwon held firm, then broke serve to lead 6-5 before serving out the match to secure the title.
It marked the first time since last summer that Holmgren had reached a tournament final.
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