Overview
OneAsia is a centralized professional tournament destination for elite golfers across the Asia-Pacific with an aim to maximize playing opportunities for leading players across the region.
The mission of OneAsia is to allow the region's best to gain access to more events, ultimately providing them with an alternative destination to the PGA Tour and the European Tour, and in the long term retaining their talent in the region without compromising their development.
OneAsia harnesses the strengths of the region, bringing together the very best in golfing talent, drawing on combined potential of commercial partners, and pooling the resources of tournament expertise from all over Asia-Pacific for impeccably run events on one consolidated platform.
The tournament destination is entirely inclusive to all leading players across the region, automatically providing them with the opportunity to further their potential on home ground. Players will benefit from OneAsia through an increased number of quality events and prize money, focused media coverage, the potential for added revenue and a viable career pathway right here in Asia.
Yesterday to Tomorrow
Following many years of discussion and a a memorandum of understanding signed between the China Golf Association, the Japan Golf Tour, the PGA of Australia, Korea Golf Association and the Korea PGA, OneAsia was conceived to provide an even higher level of playing opportunities to all leading golfers in the region.
Five events were scheduled for its inaugural year in 2009, with tournaments staged in China, Korea and Australia. In 2010, OneAsia doubled in size with 10 events on its schedule, offering full Asian field opportunities across five countries in Asia-Pacific, including Indonesia and Thailand, as well as a total of over US$12 million in prize money. Leading players from South East Asia also attended six OneAsia tournaments for the first time, with new support from the ASEAN PGA Tour.
In 2011, OneAsia launched its inaugural Qualifying School to provide enhanced alternative access for leading players from across the region and the globe, to all of OneAsia's 2011 elite tournaments. The tour staged 11 tournaments in 2011, each with a minimum purse of around $1 million.
OneAsia expects further growth in 2012 that has already been realised in part by the co-sanctioning of the Enjoy Jakarta Indonesia Open by the Japan Golf Tour Organisation. The schedule has a tentative 14 tournaments earmarked including the national Open Championships of five countries -- Australia, China, Indonesia, Korea and Thailand.
OneAsia has built a strong TV platform since its formation, one which is arguably one of the most comprehensive ever to have existed for Asia-Pacific golf, providing live coverage for four hours a day, across all four tournament days, and broadcast to over 400 million homes in more than 40 countries.
The OneAsia Structure
OneAsia is a non-profit organisation.
It appointed Sang Y. Chun as Independent Chairman & Commissioner in April 2010, to assist in further growing OneAsia and strengthening its relationships across the globe.
In 2012 OneAsia appointed Tenniel Chu, Vice-Chairman of the Mission Hills Group, as Secertary-General with a brief to help develop relations with national and international golf bodies.
The Founding members of OneAsia are the China Golf Association, the Korea Golf Tour, the Korea Golf Association and the PGA of Australia.
The founding members of the OneAsia Board include:
- Zhang Xiaoning, China Golf Association
- Yang Jie, China Golf Association
- Seoung Ghee-wook, Korea Golf Tour
- Kang Hyung-mo, Korea Golf Association
- Brian Thorburn, PGA of Australia
- Brad Gale, PGA of Australia
Key OneAsia staff
- Sang Y. Chun - Chairman and Commissioner
- Tenniel Chu - Secretary-General
- Rob Neal - Chief Business Officer
- David Parkin - Director of Tour Operations
- Tina Lee - Director of Business Affairs
- David Fox - Director of Media and Communications