The Korea Championship, which was held on the 30th at Jack Nicklaus GC in Songdo, Incheon, is the first DP World Tour (formerly European Tour) event held in Korea in 10 years. In terms of authority, the DP World Tour is the stage next to the PGA Tour. Because it is based in Europe, world-class players such as Rory McIlroy have consistently participated.
So, the Korea Championship was an opportunity for Korean Tour players of the Korea Professional Golf Association (KPGA) to experience the world stage. As this tournament was held in Korea, KPGA participated as a co-hosting organization, and the number of Korean Tour players also increased significantly. A total of 60 Korean players participated in the competition.ㅋㅋㅋ벳
According to the golf industry, it was unclear whether the Korea Championship would be held until the last minute. Including the total prize money of 2 million dollars and operating expenses, the cost of exceeding 5 million dollars (approximately 6.7 billion won) was a problem. A person in charge of the tournament said, “There are only several sponsors who considered sponsorship but immediately withdrew after hearing the amount.”
At this time, it was Genesis who acted as the ‘relief pitcher’. Genesis is a representative company that has built a premium image through sponsorship of golf tournaments. It is holding the Genesis Invitational (total prize money of 20 million dollars), a ‘special tournament’ on the PGA Tour, and is participating as a sponsor of the Genesis Scottish Open (total prize money of 9 million dollars) on the DP World Tour. In addition, it is also in charge of the Korean Tour Genesis Championship (total prize money of 1.5 billion won).
Genesis had already held tournaments on the DP World Tour and the Korean Tour, but decided to invest immediately after hearing the circumstances of the Korea Championship. An executive from a golf agency said, “When it was said that there was difficulty in opening the DP World Tour for the first time in 10 years in Korea, I did not hesitate to pay about half of the tournament operating cost.” I heard that it was rejected as it was an investment for development.” This is the story of how the name of the tournament was decided as Korea Championship Presented by Genesis.
With this Korea Championship, the door of the DP World Tour is expected to be more open to domestic players. According to officials from the golf association, the DP World Tour and the Korean Tour have agreed to expand the DP World Tour participation rights for Korean Tour players. Currently, only the first place in Genesis points is given a DP World Tour seed. It is known that the two organizations discussed ways to increase this seed and continue the co-sponsored competition.