KDUORWWH·V )LUVW - Carolina Golf Journal

When the Chiquita Classic
comes to the The Club at
Longview September 24 -
30, it will be carrying a new name
for the professional tour level of
play. On June 27th the PGA Tour
Commissioner Tim Finchem
announced
that effective
immediately
the Nationwide
Tour
would be
replaced by
a new
sponsor -
the Web.com
Tour.
Photo Credit: PGA Tour
PGa Tournament news
PGA Commissioner Tim
Finchem announces
the 10-year deal with
Web.com to sponsor the
developmental tour.
Nationwide Tour now called the Web.com Tour
The Club at Longview to host the tour’s Chiquita Classic
The 10year
deal
with
Web.com
takes over a
tour that is
the minor league of professional
golf, where aspiring pros try to
qualify for the PGA Tour. Terms of
the deal were not disclosed, though
the return on name recognition alone
is proven. Nationwide took over as
the umbrella sponsor in 2003, and it
has turned into a noun in the golf
world.
This is the fifth name in the last
22 years of this developmental tour
which was established in 1990 by
the PGA Tour. It was originally
named the Ben Hogan Tour,
sponsored by the Ben Hogan Golf
Company. After three seasons, Nike
acquired the title sponsorship. Then
in 2000 Buy.com became the title
sponsor through 2002, when
Nationwide acquired the rights.
Special to Carolina Golf Journal
Web.com, based in Jacksonville,
Fla., is a provider of internet services
and online marketing solutions to
small and medium-sized businesses.
The company was founded in 1997.
Since going public in 2005, chairman
and CEO David Brown said it has
grown from 50,000 customers to 3
million customers, and its revenues
have increased from $30 million to
$500 million.
“There’s no better venue in
sports today than golf, and through
the PGA Tour association we’ll be
seen. We’ll have literally hundreds
of millions of impressions throughout
the world,” Brown said “It’s OK
that you don’t know the ‘Web.com’
name, that’s by design. We’ve been
a very quiet company up to this
point, but we believe that mass
adoption of the internet by small
businesses is happening now, so
now we think it’s the time to strike.”
“We looked through all the different
opportunities and we felt that
the PGA Tour was the best opportunity
not only to create a voice in the
marketplace but to create a positive
voice. That professionalism, that
integrity, that dedication that is
associated with PGA Tour, that's
what we are, as well. And we want
that to rub off on us as we build
our brand in the marketplace.”
“They’re a company that’s wellpositioned,”
PGA Tour Commissioner
Tim Finchem said. “They’re
in a growth mode. Because they
deal with literally millions of small
businesses around the United States,
they are a company that’s interested
in every single market in this country.”
The agreement comes four
months after the tour renewed its
deal for the FedEx Cup, a $35
million bonus series. Last fall, the
tour negotiated a nine-year television
deal with NBC Sports and CBS
Sports, meaning its TV contracts are
set through 2021.
The Web.com Tour currently
awards PGA Tour membership to
the 25 leading money winners at the
end of the season. With structural
changes to the PGA Tour qualifying
set to begin in the fall of 2013, the
Web.com Tour will award 50 PGA
memberships to the top 50 money
winners.
The Charlotte bound Chiquita
Classic will feature a field of 156
players competing with 72 holes of
stroke play for a purse of $550,000.
The Club at Longview opened for
play in 2003 and is a 7,065-yard
Jack Nicklaus layout. It is located in
south Charlotte off Tom Short Road
just past the back entrance to
Providence Country Club, about
15 miles from downtown. A pro-am
will be played on Wednesday,
September 26.
The Chiquita Classic has named
the Charlotte chapter of the Juvenile
Diabetes Research Foundation
(JDRF) as the Tournament’s
primary charity beneficiary.
“We are pleased to name the
Charlotte Chapter of JDRF as the
primary beneficiary of the Chiquita
Classic,” said Fernando Aguirre,
Chiquita chairman and chief
executive officer. “Millions of
Americans have juvenile diabetes
and through the Chiquita Classic
we hope to make an impact in
defeating this disease.”
22 - www.CaRolinaGolfJouRnal.Com - SummeR 2012 _____________________________________________________________