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Michelle Wie arrives in Korea on April 29 to take part in the Korean Pro Golf Association¡¯s SK Telecom event at the Sky 72 golf course on Incheon¡¯s Yeongjongdo Island. After turning pro last year, the teenage golf sensation became eligible for appearance fees and prize money, so just how much will she be raking in on this Korea trip?
SK says the appearance fees for the mixed event is US$700,000. That is still less than Tiger Woods, who usually commands some $3 million if he takes the green in official events outside the U.S. He did show himself at an exhibition in 2004 on Jeju for a pittance of $1.5 million, but that was not a formal match. Wie may get less, but she still bags more than Annika Sorenstam, who contents herself with around $500,000. For a 17-year-old with no championship experience, Wie is certainly paid well.
In addition, the Korean-American golfer is expected to clinch endorsement deals with two or three domestic firms. There is a rumor making the rounds of the advertising industry that a certain mid-size construction company will pay the athlete some $2.4 million to appear in its PR materials over the next two years. That would put her far ahead of even the biggest endorsements earner in Korea, the K-Pop star Rain, who gets around $1 million a year. And then there is talk that Wie is in the midst of contract negotiations with domestic clothing makers. Since she is already in a more than comfortable arrangement with Nike, she will not be talking to other sportswear makers but focus on daily wear. That endorsement is expected to net her another $1 million.
Wie and SK Telecom will be giving some of it back, having pledged $600,000 to Yonsei Severance Hospital and Korea University Medical Center for children with incurable diseases. The endowment will be used to help some 30 children with developmental disabilities get surgery that would otherwise be out of their financial reach.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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