[THE INVESTOR] Hyundai Motor announced on June 28 that it will sponsor a major PGA tournament in Los Angeles from next year with its entry-level luxury brand Genesis.

The tournament, held at the Riviera Country Club, will be named the Genesis Open from 2017, the carmaker said. The tournament will be organized by Tiger Woods Foundation.

The tournament being sponsored by Hyundai Motor is one of the major events in the PGA tour, where golf legend Jack Nicklaus made his professional debut. It also saw Tiger Woods make his PGA debut, the carmaker said. 


The Genesis Open 2017 will be held from Feb. 13 to 19, and will be broadcast across the US by CBS, Hyundai said.

Erwin Raphael, who is leading Genesis brand in the US, said that the tournament is optimal for promoting the Genesis brand.

Aside from the US golf tournament, the Genesis brand signed on as a sponsor of Korea Professional Golfers Association’s Korean Tour in April. The Korean sponsorship will last until 2019.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)