“This is a watershed.”
Tod Leonard talks to the folks in San Diego about the inability to land a sponsor for the old Buick event, even though it's an almost guaranteed great rating and field. Apparently the inability to find sponsorship money has the tour's attention.
“I've seen it in the last 90 days. The PGA Tour is completely aware the world has changed,” said Tom Wornham, the chairman of the Century Club, who along with tournament director Tom Wilson has been entrusted with finding a new sponsor.
“This is a watershed.”
And now, the words every tour player dreads.
Over the next two years, the tour has around a dozen events that need to re-up with sponsors. If one of its premier events in San Diego is having so much trouble, what does that mean for everyone else?
It means the model will have to change. In a setup unique to major American sports, the golfers are their own bosses, and they're going to have to decide to take a pay cut, because the only way deals are going to get done is if the sponsors are paying less.
Wait Tod, the commissioner is talking growth. At least in September he was: "The increases have been slight, but we wanted to continue to grow. And our plan is to continue to grow. And that means purses and charity dollars."
Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 07:25 PM
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Reader Comments (7)
Brings to mind hearing Ian Poulter scream at the top of his voice at Loch Lomond "I'm never coming back to this poxy Mickey Mouse tournament-yes a tournament with a great purse,on a great course,with super practice facilities,a creche,physio trailers,players lounge with free food for the players and their families etc etc etc.And the event's crime?His courtesy Range Rover was 5 minutes late!Poor darling!
What is relevant is does the sponsor get an appropriate return on the investment?
It's not an opinion, but rather a fact, that more and more often companies are deciding that no, we do not get the necessary return.
Two ways to deal with that, (a) provide more "product", or (b) cut the price. I don't think a meet and greet between players and sponsors is going to close the gap -- that leaves (b), cutting the price.
There used to be a lot of big publicly traded companies that took on title sponsorships because the CEO liked golf and had a personal connection to an event, or region, or host. CEO's have less and less leeway to do that because (i) the financial commitment has skyrocketed and (ii) the economic/political environment is a 4-club headwind.
Just going to get uglier from here...wait until they delve into Finchem's comp plan and retirement benefits.
Look at the PBA Tour (bowling). They play for pocket money in comparison, but the player-fan connection is vastly superior compared to the PGA Tour. The top players hardly skip any tournaments, oversleeping a pro-am start is unheard of, and you can frequently see Walter Ray Williams, Chris Barnes and Norm Duke in the actual gallery when they're not on the lanes, interacting with the fans. In other words, the smaller purses make it neccesary for the players to prove their worth.