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| Kumho Tire will host the KLPGA tournament at the Weihai Point Hotel & Golf Resort in Shandong Province from July 7 to 9. / Courtesy of Kumho Tire |
Kumho Tire has been using golf as a marketing tool to help raise its corporate brand image and bolster its sales. It has been hosting a golf tournament in China since 2013 and sponsoring many top Korean and non-Korean professional golfers.
From July 7 to 9, the tiremaker will sponsor the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) tournament in Weihai, Shandong Province, to promote golf exchanges between Korea and China.
The event will be held at the Weihai Point Hotel & Golf Resort and feature top players from both the KLPGA and China Ladies Professional Golf Association (CLPGA). The prize money totals 500 million won ($440,000) and the winner will receive 100 million won.
A total of 120 Korean and Chinese golfers, including Jang Ha-na and Feng Shanshan sponsored by the tiremaker, are expected to take part in the KLPGA 2017 Kumho Tire Ladies Open. The tournament will be aired live on SBS Golf channel from Friday to Sunday.
"The Kumho Tire Ladies Open has contributed to boosting sports exchanges between the two neighbors since 2013," a Kumho Tire spokesman said. "The event has also helped improve our brand image in both countries. We expect top KLPGA and CLPGA players to perform their best on the Weihai Point Golf Course. The event will be a good opportunity for golf fans to experience the course through the players."
The 18-hole golf course is par 72 and stretches 6,300 yards. It was built along the coastal line of Weihai. Kumho Tire acquired the course in 2006 and has turned it into one of the world's premium golf clubs.
"The competition will attract thousands of galleries from both Korea and China. It only takes about 45 minutes by plane from Incheon International Airport to Weihai," the official said. "It is not an easy course for amateurs, as players are required to hit the ball accurately all the time due to water hazards and an assortment of other obstacles. But many amateur Korean golfers who visited our course loved it."
In addition to women's golf and racing teams, Kumho Tire has been sponsoring the Kia Tigers, a professional baseball club based in the southwestern city of Gwangju, and several football clubs in Britain, France and Germany.
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