Three months ago Matt Kuchar won the Sony Open in Hawaii, the PGA Tour’s first full-field event of the year. Of the 144 players at Waialae Country Club, 47 were not from the U.S.

Next week’s Lotte Championship at Ko Olina will have almost twice that many foreign players, and the LPGA has worked hard at welcoming them. Its web page can be translated into Korean, Japanese, German, Chinese and Thai.

“I think this shows how global the LPGA Tour has become,” says Canadian Brooke Henderson, who opens defense of her championship Wednesday. “With more and more tournaments in new places, we are encouraging players from all over the world to take up the game and pursue it at the highest level.

“It is great to see all of the diversity on the tour. Each player has a unique background and story to tell, which makes the Tour that much stronger.”

This is the ninth stop of the year for the LPGA, and fifth in the U.S. The next dozen are on the mainland, then the Tour goes overseas again for nine of its final 13 tournaments.

Lotte ends on Saturday so the final round can be broadcast Sunday in South Korea, home of the sponsor that brought it here in 2012 and is here through at least next year.

Last year, 21 of the top 30 finishers were from countries other than the U.S., including the first five. Even a quick look at this year’s final field is staggering in its geographical variety.

Golfers from India (Aditi Ashok), Israel (Laetitia Beck), Denmark (Nicole Broch Larsen), South Africa (Ashleigh Buhai) and Hong Kong (Tiffany Chan) jump out immediately. There are 60 foreign players before you get to “O” in the alphabet.

Last year, the LPGA had 26 winners from 10 countries. The five major champs were all from different parts of the globe. Four golfers, from four countries, were ranked No. 1. The last American at the top was Stacy Lewis, in 2014.

This year’s rookie class is composed of 27 players from 14 countries, including the United States. And, exactly half of the 34 now entered in Lotte’s Sunday qualifier are not from the U.S.

Punahou alum Stephanie Kono, who got her LPGA playing privileges back this year after finishing 29th in the inaugural LPGA Q-Series last fall, will not be home to play. Her back problems have returned and she is waiting to heal before entering her first LPGA event since qualifying in 2012 after an All-American career at UCLA.

Lotte’s field is as loaded as ever. Henderson hasn’t finished outside the top 11 here in three tries and is currently 16th on the money list. All but three of those above her will be at Ko Olina Golf Club.

“There is no doubt that the level of talent on Tour gets better each year,” the 21-year old says. “I think this raises the level of play from everyone, and certainly pushes me to work that much harder. It also makes it that much sweeter when you are able to play well and have a great finish.”

Jin Young Ko comes in at No. 1 on the money list and in the rankings after winning the year’s first major last weekend. Ko became the sixth South Korean in eight years to earn Rookie of the Year honors in 2018. Her win at Sunday’s ANA Inspiration made her the 15th different Korean to win an LPGA major since Se Ri Pak’s inspirational breakthrough in 1998. Ko is also the only player to win more than once this year.

Thai sisters Ariya and Moriya Jutanugam are also coming to Hawaii. Ariya won three times last year, including the U.S. Open, and swept all the major awards.

Hawaii’s Michelle Wie is one of five previous Lotte champions back for more, along with Henderson, Cristie Kerr, Minjee Lee and Sei Young Kim.

Even LPGA Hall of Famer Juli Inkster, who turns 60 next year, is back. She will captain the U.S. Solheim Cup team a record third time this September, at Gleneagles in Scotland. The Americans — including Wie — have won the last two Cups with Inkster at the helm.

LPGA LOTTE CHAMPIONSHIP

>> When: April 17-18 from 7 a.m.; April 19-20 from 8 a.m.

>> Where: Ko Olina Golf Club (Par 36-36–72, 6,383 yards)

>> Purse: $2 million ($300,000 first prize)

>> Defending champion: Brooke Henderson (12-under-par 276)

>> Admission: $10 daily Wednesday to Saturday, or $25 for season (all week) badge. Children 16-under free with paid adult. Active duty and retired military free with official military ID.

>> TV: Golf Channel, 1-5 p.m. daily, with repeats

>> Sunday: Qualifying, from 8 a.m.

>> Monday: HTA Ladies First Golf Clinic, 4:30 p.m. with Lizette Salas and Angel Yin (free)

>> Tuesday: Pro-Am, from 7 a.m.