DP World Tour Announces New Korean PGA Link Up
After confirming a deal with the Japan Golf Tour earlier this month, the DP World Tour has now announced a tie-up with the Korean PGA to strengthen its ties amid the ongoing threat from LIV Golf.
The new deal sees the KPGA’s Genesis Point Award winner – the tour’s earnings leader – become a member of the DP World Tour for the following season, beginning with the current 2023 campaign and launching an all-new $2 million Tournament in Korea.
The top finishers on the Genesis Point list will also gain access to various legs of the 2023 DP World Tour Qualifying School. The PGA, DP World and Korean PGA Tours “intend to further discuss expanding additional path commitments for 2024 and beyond.” so the DP World Tour.
Youngsoo Kim secured that exemption for the 2023 DP World Tour season after ending the 2022 campaign as a Genesis Point Award winner after earning his first career KPGA win at the Genesis Championship in October before he won again at the season-ending LG Signature Players Championship.
Kim’s victory in the Genesis Championship earned him a place in July’s Genesis Scottish Open, the Rolex Series event sponsored by the DP World Tour and PGA Tour.
The DP World Tour has also confirmed that it will return to Korea next April for the first time in 10 years for the inaugural Korea Championship. The tournament, co-sponsored by the DP World Tour and KPGA, will be held at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea in Incheon with a purse of US$2 million.
The DP World Tour says the announcement further enhances the playing opportunities for international players to compete at the highest levels of professional men’s golf – with ten PGA Tour cards awarded to the top finishers on the DP World Tour.
The KPGA will also collaborate on other key business areas alongside the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour, including strategic development and commercial growth, as well as future collaboration on media rights strategy and player path improvements, including access to the Korn Ferry Tour.
DP World Tour Chief Executive Officer Keith Pelley said: “The KPGA has a long history of producing exceptional talent and we are excited to affirm these formal pathways and give players well-defined pathways to develop their skills on the DP World Tour and show PGA Tour.
“Combined with our tournament in Korea next April, we look forward to working closely with the KPGA and PGA Tour to inspire future generations of Korean players and enable them to reach the pinnacle of the men’s professional game.”
PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said, “Sungjae Im, KH Lee, Si Woo Kim and Joo-hyung ‘Tom’ Kim have all become household names in the United States, thanks in large part to the contributions they have made over the past September for the international team at the 2022 Presidents Cup. What all these young stars have in common is that they have honed their craft at the KPGA, which continues a proud tradition of producing world-class talent every year. We look forward to seeing the next young stars from this proud country of golf en route to the DP World Tour and perhaps later to the PGA Tour in the coming seasons.”
Ja-Cheol (JC) Koo, Chairman of the Korea Professional Golfers’ Association, said, “It has been our honor to see the Korean Tour winners have similar success at the top level of men’s professional golf. We are confident that today’s announcement will help keep the sport growing in Korea and we are grateful to be officially welcomed into the meritocracy that men’s professional football offers.”
Korean stars who have previously been victorious on both the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour include KJ Choi, YE Yang and Seung-Yul Noh. Choi collectively holds the record for most PGA Tour wins by an Asian golfer at eight, including the 2011 Players Championship.
Choi said, “I am pleased that the KPGA, DP World Tour and PGA Tour have expanded their relationship, which will only benefit Korean golfers. Our young players will be further motivated to excel in the game as there is now a clear career path for them to compete in the KPGA and then play against the best players in the world on the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour. This announcement is a wonderful development for the Korean Gulf.”
