The 2012 PGA Tour season kicks off this week, and the season-opening event will be sponsored by Hyundai Motor Co., the country’s largest automobile maker.

The company announced Thursday that it was again named the official sponsor of the U.S. PGA Tour opener, which is scheduled to tee off on Friday in Hawaii.

The traditional first event of the PGA Tour has been played at Kapalua Resort on the island of Maui since 1999.

The tournament has had several title sponsors, and Hyundai Motor Co. took over the title sponsorship in 2011.

Under the sponsorship deal, Hyundai Motor provides its luxury models, the Equus and the Genesis as the tournament’s official vehicles, and shows its brand logos on the scoreboard and golf balls.

“The company believes its sponsoring of the event will help improve its brand image in the U.S. and the world,” the company said in a statement.

With offering a total purse of $5.6 million, the season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions will feature 28 winners from the 2011 season on the PGA Tour, including Korean golf star Choi Kyung-ju and defending champion Jonathan Byrd.

But last year’s U.S. Open champion Rory McIlroy, the two-time winner and world No. 1 Luke Donald and British Open champion Darren Clarke opted not to participate in the season opener. 



By Oh Kyu-wook
(596story@heraldcorp.com)