IMG signs 3 year deal with Pak

SEOUL, South Korea -- Se Ri Pak, the South Korean star who won two major championships in the her first season on the LPGA Tour, will be represented by the International Management Group.

Samsung, the South Korean electronics giant, said today it signed a three-year deal with IMG to manage Pak's career. Samsung said it will continue to act as Pak's corporate sponsor.

Pak, 21, signed a 10-year exclusive managerial and sponsorship deal with Samsung in 1996 that pays her about $1 million a year and unspecified performance bonuses.

"We hope the systematic and scientific management through IMG will help Pak remain a top-notch player," Samsung spokesman Ahn Ho-moon said.

IMG will seek endorsement deals with golf equipment makers and other companies and split 30 percent of the profits with Samsung. Pak will receive the remaining 70 percent, Samsung officials said.

Pak, The Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year, won the LPGA Championship in May, and became the youngest winner of the U.S. Women's Open in early July. She won two other tour events and finished second on the money list with $872,170.

TRW