What Is The Vision For Weihai Point Golf And Resort?

It all started with a strong initiative by Kumho Asiana Group chairman Sam Koo Park after his visit to the former Pan China Golf Club. He was fascinated by the natural environment and clear water surrounding this tiny peninsula and decided to purchase the property, believing it could be developed as a unique golf resort. He knew the course length could not be extended to championship course level, so it was natural to create a true resort course, a thinking person’s course. Upon its grand opening in August 2008, we set a goal to become one of the world’s five best golf courses within 10 years.

How Easy Is It For Visitors To Korea And China To Spend A Few Days At Weihai Point?

Various flight connections plus the property’s 6-star hotel, with 53 spacious guestrooms and 28 luxury seaside villas, make for a very convenient golf tour. Asiana Airlines operates nine weekly flights (45 minutes) between Seoul Incheon and Weihai International airports and another daily flight (50 minutes) between Seoul and Yantai, close to Weihai. Our luxurious limousine bus gets guests to Weihai Point within 50 minutes from both airports. So golfers can take a 9 a.m. flight to Weihai, enjoy an afternoon round of golf, and catch the 3:30 p.m. flight from Yantai after a round the next day. Asiana also has four weekly flights between Busan, Korea, and Weihai; and Chinese carriers operate direct domestic flights from Beijing and Shanghai to Weihai or Yantai.

How Does Weihai Point Compare To Other Golf Courses In Asia?

Every golf course has its unique concept, depending on the landscape and architecture. Most courses in Asia are on mountains or flat land with well-designed landscape gardening; they must distinguish themselves through marketing efforts, accessibility or maintenance level. At Weihai Point, the story is different: Its most unique characteristic is the property itself. With professional management and maintenance supervised by the acclaimed Asiana Country Club in Korea and run by Kumho Asiana Group, Weihai Point is widely accepted as one of the most beautiful links courses in the world. Even though the course length is only 6,235 yards, seasonal strong winds and strategic design make it very challenging.

Golfers who prefer highlands over seaside may enjoy our Asiana Country Club, a 36-hole championship course near Seoul. The membership club holds a Korean PGA game every year and is highly appreciated by the high-end golfing society in Korea.

Tell Our Readers About Your Career At The Kumho Asiana Group.

I joined Asiana Airlines 23 years ago, handling regulatory issues and traffic right negotiations for international routes. After completing an IATA aviation MBA in 1997, I shifted to airline marketing. As alliance manager, I negotiated alliances with major carriers, most notably Asiana’s membership in Star Alliance in 2002. I helped expand the airline into the Philippines as country manager in Manila.

I then moved into the golf, resort and hotel sectors with the acquisition and renovations of Weihai Point and LaoLao Bay Golf in Saipan. More recently, I handled hotel development projects including InterContinental Asiana Saigon, Sheraton Incheon Hotel and JW Marriott Hotel Tripoli, as well as business supervision of the Kempinski Beijing, Hanoi Daewoo and Sheraton Guilin hotels.