Golfer Kim Mi-hyun tees off. Oct. 19, 2012 [Yonhap]
Golfer Kim Mi-hyun tees off. Oct. 19, 2012 [Yonhap]

A large golf practice facility operated by the family of Kim Mi-hyun, an LPGA Tour winner with eight career victories, has been reported to police on charges of illegal subletting.

According to the Incheon Nonhyeon Police Station, Incheon's Namdong-gu district office filed a complaint Thursday against the operating company of Kim Mi-hyun Golf World on charges including violation of the Public Property Act.

The district office determined that the operating company had sublet a screen golf facility on the first below-ground floor, a restaurant on the first floor and a golf equipment shop on the second floor without prior approval, in breach of the Public Property Act and the terms of its management contract.

The district office confirmed the violations in March and requested the company comply with its contract terms on June 11. It filed the complaint after the company failed to take action by July 31 — the deadline the company had set for converting the spaces to direct management.

Kim Mi-hyun Golf World was built on a park site in Nonhyeon-dong, Namdong-gu, with a land area of 27,069 square meters and a total floor area of 4,284 square meters. Kim's father serves as head of the operating company.

Kim's side built the golf facility in 2009 and donated it to Namdong-gu, securing operating rights for 25 years through 2034 under a management contract.

Kim debuted on the Korea Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour in 1996 before joining the LPGA Tour in 1999, where she won eight times over 12 years. Standing at 155 centimeters, she earned the nickname "Super Peanut."

Police plan to question both the complainant and the accused in sequence.


jshan@heraldcorp.com