S. Korean golf legend Pak Se-ri to host LPGA tournament in LA

South Korean golf legend Pak Se-ri will team up with a global investment firm to host a newly named tournament on the LPGA Tour, officials have announced.

The LPGA Tour announced Tuesday (U.S. time) that Pak and the Silicon Valley-based investment company Fir Hills will stage the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship from March 18-24 at Palos Verdes Golf Club in suburban Los Angeles.

The 72-hole tournament will have a field of 144 players competing for a US$2 million purse, up by $250,000 from last year, when it was called the DIO Implant LA Open.

Pak, a World Golf Hall of Famer, was a trailblazer in women’s golf for South Korea and across Asia. She burst onto the LPGA scene in 1998, winning the first two of her five career major titles en route to capturing the Rookie of the Year award.

Her playoff victory at the U.S. Women’s Open at age 20 featured a career-defining shot from near a water hazard on the 72nd hole that forced the 18-hole playoff, and that moment alone inspired a whole generation of South Korean girls to pick up the golf club. That group includes future LPGA Hall of Famer Park In-bee and major champions Ryu So-yeon and Choi Na-yeon.

Pak retired after the 2016 season with 25 LPGA titles to her name.

“It is an honor to return to the LPGA Tour as host for the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship at Palos Verdes Golf Club,” Pak said, in a statement released by the LPGA. “Mentoring the next generation of golfers and giving back to the game I love is at the core of everything I do. I’m excited to kick off this new partnership and elevate this tournament to new heights on the LPGA Tour.”