‘Host’ Park Seri: “Invited Shin Ji-ae after seeing her Olympic determination”

LPGA Per Hills Park Seri Championship Briefing Held
Top Rankers Including Kim Hyoju, Korda, Lydia Ko to Participate
"We Will Prepare to Make It a Historic Tournament" Aspiration

‘Golf legend’ Park Seri revealed the reason why she invited Shin Ji-ae, who is active on the Japanese stage, to the U.S. Women’s Professional Golf (LPGA) Tour event.

Se-ri Park is expressing her feelings as the tournament host at the LPGA Tour Pur Hills Se-ri Park Championship briefing session. [Photo by Baz International]

At the LPGA Tour Pure Hills Park Seri Championship (total prize money $2 million) briefing held on the 19th at the Westin Chosun Seoul, she said, "I greet Shin Ji-ae every year. Since this tournament is held before the Asian season opens, she has expressed her desire to participate," adding, "The player herself seems to have a strong will to participate in this year’s Paris Olympics, so I invited her."

The tournament will be held for four days from March 21 at the Palos Verdes Golf Club (par 71, 6,447 yards) in Palos Verdes Estates, California, USA. This is an LPGA Tour event named after Park Seri in the United States. This year, world-class players including Shin Ji-ae, Kim Hyo-joo, Jeon In-ji, Choi Hye-jin, Nelly Korda (USA), Lydia Ko (New Zealand), Brooke Henderson (Canada), and Atthaya Thitikul (Thailand) will participate in large numbers.

Park Seri said, "I will prepare so that it becomes a tournament that goes down in history." Established in 2018, this tournament was held under the name Dio Implant Los Angeles Open for the past two years, and this year, global investment company Pure Hills took on the title sponsorship, changing the tournament name to Park Seri Championship.

This year, there are three LPGA Tour tournaments hosted by former players: the Pure Hills Park Seri Championship, the Mizuho Americas Open (Michelle Wie West) in May, and the Annika Driven (Annika Sorenstam) in November. It is unusual for an LPGA Tour event to bear a player’s name, and especially, the Park Seri Championship is the first time a Korean player’s name has been included in the tournament title.

Park Seri expressed, "I have high expectations and also feel the pressure of holding a tournament under my name in the United States," adding, "I am honored to be able to hold such a tournament and will strive to make this event a source of dreams and hope for the LPGA Tour and its players."

Park Seri held the Park Seri Invitational on the Korean Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour from 2014 to 2022. She said, "There is no difference between Korea and the U.S. in terms of playing the host role," adding, "Based on my experience as a player, there are many things players want regarding accommodations, food, and the course, so I want to prepare as much as possible in the direction the players desire." She continued, "I hope it becomes a source of dreams and hope for all participating players," and added, "I hope the tournament will continue and become a historic event."

Pure Hills, which sponsors the tournament, is a company chaired by Koo Bon-woong, son of the late Koo Ja-hong, former chairman of LG Electronics. Chairman Koo said, "I agreed that Park Seri’s efforts to nurture the next generation of players and contribute to the popularization of golf play a virtuous cycle role in the growth of the golf industry," adding, "With the expectation and conviction that this will be the starting point of efforts to create a cultural event beyond sports, I joined this tournament."