Women’s golf’s top-tier LPGA has filed a complaint against the parent company of South Korean broadcaster JTBC, it has been reported.
The LPGA has alleged that JTBC, one of its long-standing media partners, has not paid its bills for the 2024 or 2025 seasons, and has thus filed a complaint in the Southern District of New York court against the JoongAng Ilbo parent company.
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This comes after the body announced the cancelation of a March event in California – the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship – because of “the event underwriter failing to fulfill any portion of its payment obligations to the LPGA Tour for the 2024 and 2025 events,” as quoted from the complaint.
That event underwriter was JTBC, media reported following the cancelation. The event purse last year was $2 million in total, with $300,000 going to the winner.
The current deal between the two parties is due to expire at the end of 2024, and the LPGA is now understood to be looking for a new South Korean rights partner.
In a memo to players earlier this week, cited in the Golfweek publication, Liz Moore – the LPGA’s interim commissioner – has said a complaint would be filed “to enforce a guarantee agreement with a JTBC affiliate to recover the unpaid amounts.”
However, the media rights deal between the two parties has not been terminated – Moore added that the LPGA “will continue honoring our obligations to avoid disruptions in tournament coverage in Korea.
“However, if JTBC fails to meet its broadcast commitments, we are prepared to implement alternative solutions.”
Previously, the LPGA sued JTBC Plus, which operates the South Korean broadcaster’s golf channel, in 2021, with both parties settling the year after.
South Korea produces some of the most successful and well-known players on the LPGA Tour, such as Pak Se-Ri, and the media rights relationship between the LPGA and JoongAng Ilbo dates back to 2009.
International media rights to the LPGA Tour, meanwhile, are sold and distributed by heavyweight agency IMG.
The LPGA is being led by Moore at the moment on an interim basis, with previous full-time commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan having stepped down in January.
Moore was previously the golf body’s corporate secretary and its chief legal and technology officer.
