Annual Myrtle Beach Event to be Known as “Golf.com World Amateur Handicap Championship”
December 16, 2009, Myrtle Beach, S.C. – Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday and the Sports Illustrated Golf Group today announced the formation of an integrated marketing and sales partnership as part of the SI Golf Group’s agreement to become the title sponsor of the “World’s Largest Single-Site Amateur Golf Tournament” which will now be called the “Golf.com World Amateur Handicap Championship.” The 2010 tournament begins August 30.
In its role, the SI Golf Group – comprised of Golf Magazine, SI Golf Plus and Golf.com – will immediately begin working with Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday to develop marketing and sales opportunities to deliver a national client base. Concurrently, the SI Golf Group will assist in developing social network and digital platforms to drive awareness and participation for the tournament. This is a two-year deal with a mutual option for a third.
“We are excited about working with our friends at Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday to take the Golf.com World Amateur Handicap Championship to unprecedented heights,” said Dick Raskopf, Sports Illustrated Golf Group Publisher. “This tournament is one of golf’s crown jewels, and the opportunity to bring Sports Illustrated back to Myrtle Beach where it all began is exciting.”
The SI Golf Group is a unit within the Sports Illustrated Group. It is the No. 1 media company in golf with a combined audience of 12.6 million avid golfers and fans. Golf.com is the digital engine of the group and is the most visited website in the sport.
The relationship also brings Sports Illustrated back to its place of origin: Pine Lakes Country Club. Back in 1954, Time Inc. executives planned the concept of a national sports weekly magazine during a company outing at the club. Today, Pine Lakes commemorates the birthplace of SI with a plaque, pictures and articles inside the club.
Every August for the past 26 years, Myrtle Beach has been the site where 3,600 golfers from all 50 states and more than 20 foreign countries gather to stake claim to the title of “World’s Amateur Golf Champion.” Only Myrtle Beach, a destination with 102 public golf courses, can host to the world’s largest single-site amateur tournament where a minimum of 50 golf courses are played daily during the 72-hole event.
“This partnership will be a mutually-beneficial relationship for both the World Am and Golf.com,” said Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday tournament division director Dave Macpherson. “Not only is this an opportunity to align with one of the biggest names in golf but the World Am participant’s experience will be enhanced by the Golf.com sponsors who will be introduced to the event. There is no other amateur golf tournament in the world like the World Am and this event will provide a new realm of story opportunities for Golf.com and its readers, in addition to advancing their goal of growing the game of golf.”
The Rawlings Golf Company was the title sponsor for the first two years of the event followed by a 19-year run with DuPont as the lead sponsor, and most recently with PGA TOUR Superstore, who served in that role for five years.
About the SI Golf Group
Golf Magazine is at the core of the most powerful media company in the game, the SI Golf Group. The magazine, which delivers a circulation of 1.4 million golf enthusiasts with a readership of 6.1 Million, us golf’s most widely read publication and provides the best instruction, equipment reviews and travel coverage in the category. With the combined resources of Golf, SI Golf Plus (the No. 1 golf weekly publication) and Golf.com (the highest trafficked golf website). The SI Golf Group delivers a monthly audience of 12.6 million avid golfers and fans.
About the Golf.com World Amateur Handicap Championship
Hosted by Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday, the Golf.com World Amateur Handicap Championship is considered to be the most comparable experience to the U.S. Open for the amateur golfer. Held the week before Labor Day, the event is open to all amateur golfers with a USGA handicap, or the foreign equivalent. The 2009 World Am hosted 3,060 golfers from 49 states and 20 countries at 51 area golf courses for the week-long battle to determine the “World’s Amateur Golf Champion.” Flighted according to their handicaps, golfers compete in four rounds with all flight winners and ties then advancing to the 18-hole world championship playoff at the renowned Dunes Golf and Beach Club.
The on-course competition is only half the fun. Each evening after tournament play, participants and their guests enjoy hospitality at the “World’s Largest 19th Hole,” also known as the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. The 19th Hole features an extensive golf expo with equipment demos, entertainment, free food and drinks and jumbotron video boards to keep tabs on scores.
About Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday
Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday is a non-profit trade association of 76 championship golf courses, 107 golf package providers and five golf schools in the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina area. Founded in 1967, the organization has been and continues to be the driving force behind the growth of the Myrtle Beach area golf market. The originator of the “Stay and Play Package,” Golf Holiday provides non-biased information about the area accommodations and golf courses to assist golfers in making the most informed decisions when planning for their next vacation.
Golf Holiday also hosts seven events and tournaments annually to help grow the game of golf and attract golfers to the Grand Strand during slower times of year. In addition to hosting the Golf.com Superstore World Amateur Handicap Championship – the world’s largest on-site golf tournament, Golf Holiday also manages the Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After The Masters Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament each spring, Summer Family Golf Tournaments, the Spring and Fall Palmetto High School Golf Championships, the Veterans Golf Classic and the FDNY 9-11 Memorial Golf Outing. For more information, call Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday at 1-800-833-8798 or visit GolfHoliday.com.
Contact:
Cheryl Harden or Erin Barrett
The Brandon Agency
(843) 916-2009; charden@thebrandonagency.com
(843) 916-2008; ebarrett@thebrandonagency.com
Scott Novak or Ryan Watson
Sports Illustrated Group
(212) 522-2687; scott_novak@timeinc.com
(212) 522-7644; ryan_watson@timeinc.com
