[Report] 'From New Technologies to the Dream of K-Golf Equipment'... Highlights of the Golf Industry Expo

Korea Golf Industry Expo Opens for Three Days from the 7th at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi
A Showcase of New Technologies Including 'AI Electric Carts' and 'Unmanned Lawn Mowers' Using LiDAR Technology

At around 11:10 a.m. on the 7th, visitors at the Korea Golf Industry Expo are touring booths at the Kintex Exhibition Hall 2 in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi Province.
[Photo by Choi Taewon]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Taewon] “Player Kim Haerim won last year’s tournament pulling her own electric cart without a caddie. Now, it even features AI technology.”

The Korea Golf Industry Show (KGIS), held on the 7th at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, was filled with the passion of domestic companies challenging the golf equipment market, which is dominated by foreign brands, with new technologies such as autonomous driving and AI.

Around 9:10 a.m. at Hall 7 of KINTEX Exhibition Center 2, shortly after the exhibition opened, a black electric cart moving without a driver caught people’s attention amid the generally sparse crowd.

The cart was the 'NAVIGATOR AI,' a new product from Australian electric cart specialist MGI, scheduled for commercial release next year. It is the next version of the model that attracted attention last July when Kim Haerim used it without a caddie during the first round of the McCol Mona Park Open on the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour. Kim Haerim is known to have personally purchased and used MGI products.

The newly exhibited product includes a ‘Follow Me’ mode utilizing AI and GPS functions. The Follow Me mode allows the electric cart to automatically follow the golfer’s movements without any manual operation.

Usage is simple. The golfer just carries the cart remote on their body. Using data from over 4,000 golf courses worldwide, it automatically moves while maintaining an appropriate distance from the golfer, avoiding obstacles such as bunkers and hazards.

Visitors watching the unmanned mower promotional video in front of the booth of Korea Industrial Yanghaeng Co., Ltd. around 10 a.m.
[Photo by Choi Taewon]

A spectacular scene unfolded as people lined up to watch the unmanned mower from Japanese company Kyoei, which is set for commercial release next year. Around 10 a.m., the booth of Korea Industrial Trading, the Korean distributor for Kyoei, was bustling with visitors watching promotional videos of the unmanned mower.

Kyoei’s new unmanned mower, the ‘UGM170,’ is an improved model of the existing learning-type unmanned mower, enhanced with LiDAR technology. LiDAR technology is an advanced technology used in fields such as autonomous vehicles and atmospheric analysis.

The existing learning-type unmanned mower could only operate autonomously on courses where a person had previously driven and recorded the mowing path. However, by utilizing LiDAR, it can now autonomously avoid obstacles and mow even on unfamiliar courses.

A booth representative explained, “This can solve issues such as the shortage of course management personnel and quality maintenance problems depending on the operator’s skill level. After the unmanned mower, we plan to develop unmanned green mowers and unmanned bunker rakes.”

Field decoder developed and manufactured with domestic technology by Green World Co., Ltd.
[Photo by Choi Taewon]

Amid the showcase of new technologies from global companies, the efforts of domestic small and medium-sized enterprises entering the golf industry as latecomers were also remarkable.

Around 11:30 a.m., CEO Yoon Kyunghoon (61) of Green World Co., Ltd., located near the exhibition exit, appeared extremely busy attending to the influx of visitors at the booth.

Green World initially sold field decoders from well-known foreign companies, which are currently used by most domestic golf courses. However, when a new product was released and production of the existing field decoders was discontinued, CEO Yoon took on manufacturing and sales himself.

He explained the motivation for the challenge: “When production was suddenly stopped, domestic golf courses had no choice but to replace all their equipment with the new product. I wanted to provide administrators with options by making it compatible with the discontinued products.”

He revealed his dream of ushering in the era of K-Golf equipment. CEO Yoon said, “We will continuously develop good products to replace foreign products that are inconvenient for after-sales service and expensive. Someday, I want to expand globally and open the era of K-Golf equipment.”