Kumho Tire Sponsors KLPGA Star Player Choi Hye-jin

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] Kumho Tire is sponsoring rising star player Choi Hye-jin in women's golf.

Kumho Tire announced on the 21st that it held a professional sponsorship signing ceremony at its Seoul headquarters last April and decided to officially sponsor Choi until the end of this year. Due to the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) at the time, the signing ceremony was held in a simplified manner with only Choi, Kumho Tire President Jeon Dae-jin, and some officials attending.

Choi, who appeared like a comet in the 2017 KLPGA and impressed golf fans with skills beyond those of a rookie, won two tournaments and finished runner-up at the US Women's Open despite being an amateur at the time because she was not yet 18 years old. She made a dazzling debut as the KLPGA amateur with multiple wins for the first time in 18 years since Park Seri's four wins in 1995 and Lim Seo-hyun's two wins in 1999.

She officially debuted as a professional in August of the same year upon turning 18, and in 2018, she won both the Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year awards. In just her second year, last year, she swept six categories including Player of the Year and Money List leader, achieving a grand slam. Including her amateur career, she has recorded a total of nine wins to date, and considering her age, she is a player whose future performance is highly anticipated.

Choi Hye-jin, sponsored by Kumho Tire

Under this sponsorship contract, Choi will wear a uniform with the Kumho Tire logo attached to the right collar in every match. As the official sponsor of Choi, Kumho Tire has secured rights for TV and print advertisement shoots, homepage and SNS promotional activities, invitations to Kumho Tire-hosted events, and various marketing activities. In particular, Kumho Tire expects the promotional effect to increase significantly when Choi advances to global tournaments, as she has been dominating domestic competitions with outstanding results since her debut.

Kim Sang-yeop, Executive Director of Sales and Marketing at Kumho Tire, said, "We are very excited to resume golf marketing through a good relationship with the Lotte Golf Team recently," adding, "We will strive to be recognized again as a brand loved by golf fans worldwide."

Previously, Kumho Tire actively engaged in golf marketing by sponsoring top Chinese player Feng Shanshan and KLPGA representative player Jang Ha-na. Additionally, through a sponsorship agreement with the KLPGA, Kumho Tire has successfully hosted the 'Kumho Tire Women's Open' tournament for several years, continuing its golf marketing efforts.