Yoo Sang-gun, a professor of sports ICT convergence at Sangmyung University and chair of the judging panel for the third Seoul Economic Daily Golf Industry Awards, said in his review at the awards ceremony on Sept. 11, "This year's winners of the Seoul Economic Daily Golf Industry Awards have created important momentum in Korea's golf market, including by combining golf with cutting-edge technologies such as ICT and AI to open up new markets." He added, "I hope they will continue to play the leading role they play now by pioneering the future through unconventional challenges."
Acushnet Korea took the grand prize, which comes with a commendation from the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism. Acushnet Korea, the Korean unit of global golf equipment company Acushnet Co., plays a pivotal role in spreading golf culture in Korea. Since its establishment in 2004, it has supplied global golf equipment brands such as Titleist and FootJoy, leading the development of the domestic golf equipment market. It drew particularly high marks for supporting about 120 junior players, including national team and reserve team members, and for its efforts to broaden the base and strengthen the competitiveness of Korea's golf industry.
Choi In-yong, Acushnet's head of Asia, said, "Since our founding, we have worked hard with a single goal in mind: providing the best products and the finest service to Korea's passionate golfers." He added, "We will continue to do our best as one pillar of Korea's golf industry."
The top prize in the golf course category went to Daegu Country Club. Opened in 1972 as the first membership golf course in the Daegu and North Gyeongsang region, Daegu CC now operates 27 membership holes. It has hosted the Songam Cup Amateur Golf Championship, the country's most prestigious amateur event that doubles as a national team qualifier, every year since 1994, and has exclusively hosted the Korea Senior Amateur Golf Championship, a national title event, since 2011.
Challenger Korea, winner of the top prize in the golf apparel category, drew high marks for supporting players through collaborations with and sponsorship of domestic and international professional golfers under its golfwear brand Challenger, and for contributing to the spread of golf culture through professional golf content. The company continues to sponsor Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) Tour events and major golf-related events, contributing to the growth of the domestic golf industry and the sport's fan base.
The top prize in the golf tech category went to AGL Inc., a global golf tech company operating under the banner of "real-time golf reservations worldwide." Its 2024 partnership with global tech giant Google showcased the strength of a Korean tech company to the world. AGL provides Tiger Booking, a system that lets users book and pay for a round simply by entering a golf course name in Google's search bar.
Breon Company won the top prize in the golf marketing category. Founded in 2011, Breon is a sports specialist firm that has focused on sports events and athlete management since its early days. With golf as its core sport, Breon has planned and run numerous men's and women's tour events, starting with the KPGA Tour's Woori Financial Championship in 2019, helping raise the stature and prestige of Korea's professional golf tournaments.
Hana Financial Group was named the winner of the tournament category, newly created this year. The category, awarded to the tournament host that has raised an event's stature through painstaking effort and outstanding capability among sponsors of men's and women's professional golf events, went to Hana Financial Group without dissent. Hana Financial Group hosts Korea Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA) Tour and KLPGA Tour events every year, serving as a cradle for both men's and women's tours. It was credited in particular with setting a new milestone in running professional golf tournaments by combining content created with galleries with the group's digital platforms.
X-Up Inc. took the first honor in the golf industry utility category, also newly established this year. The award goes to companies providing innovative technologies and services related to golf course management and operations. X-Up, founded in May 2024, was spun off from LG Electronics. It develops artificial intelligence-based autonomous driving robots and integrated control technology, used for tasks such as golf course turf management. Lee Yong-su, CEO of X-Up, said, "We will help resolve the structural labor shortage at golf course maintenance sites, the burden of nighttime and repetitive work, and variations in work quality." He added, "Beyond turf management such as pitch marks and divots, we will introduce robots capable of handling bunker maintenance and leaf removal."
