By GENE YASUDA and SCOTT HAMILTONDeputy Editor/Business & Multimedia and Senior WriterIn an era when everything from arenas to university buildings sell rights to name their facilities, it was just a matter of time before the PGA Tour invited a sponsor to christen its TPC courses.
Earlier this month, AT&T paid an undisclosed sum for the privilege to name two courses at TPC San Antonio, which is under construction. The AT&T Oaks Course and AT&T Canyons Course, set to open in early 2010, are the first TPC layouts to be named – but they won’t be the last.
Though the Tour has no other naming deals in the works, it will pursue such opportunities as a new revenue source, according to David Pillsbury, president of PGA Tour Golf Course Properties. He added agreements are particularly likely for the Tour’s key destinations such as TPC Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Ariz., TPC Las Vegas and possibly even for its flagship: TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
Sponsorship experts said the true value of AT&T’s deal isn’t in the actual branding of the courses. Rather, they said it strengthens AT&T’s existing partnership with the Tour and should help the communications company gain more exposure in other Tour marketing initiatives. The biggest payoff would come if the Tour were to move one of its tournaments to TPC San Antonio, which is located at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa.
“The money’s not in the name of the course but in the event they’re going to hold there,” said Rob Yowell, president of Gemini Sports, a sports sponsorship consultancy. “The question is, will (the Tour) take the Valero (Texas Open) event away from LaCantera Golf Club? The Tour will be highly inclined to say, ‘This is going to be a better course for this event.’ ”
Tour officials haven’t commented about relocating tournaments, but they’ve made it clear that TPC tracks will be competition-ready.
“Every TPC we will do going forward is either built or operated with the idea that ultimately it’s going to host competitive golf on one of (our) three tours,” Pillsbury said. “That’s the core purpose of the brand.”
The AT&T contract complements the Tour’s recent mission to upgrade its TPC network. According to Pillsbury, typical naming-rights deals will run for five to 10 years. The majority of the proceeds will be earmarked to improve the sponsor’s property, but some funds may be allocated to aid other facilities within the TPC network. The Tour owns 17 TPC locations and is developing three others: San Antonio, TPC Treviso Bay in Naples, Fla., and TPC Cancun in Cancun, Mexico.
“We’re focused on growing with the right assets,” Pillsbury said. “We don’t need to grow for growth’s sake, only if it’s good for the portfolio and the brand.”
• • •
Gene Yasuda is
Golfweek’s deputy editor/Business & Multimedia. To reach him e-mail
gyasuda@golfweek.com.
Scott Hamilton is a
Golfweek senior writer. To reach him e-mail
shamilton@golfweek.com.
Posted: 3/3/2008
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