Partnership to include Golf Channel television special, amateur tour event, and online bookings deals through GolfNow.com tee time service
ORLANDO, Fla. (Feb. 17, 2011) – Golf Channel has partnered with the San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau to launch a multifaceted program to drive golfers to the myriad of first-class golf courses and resorts in the San Diego region. The partnership features online tee-time bookings promotions through Golf Channel’s leading GolfNow.com service, a dedicated San Diego episode as part of the network’s GolfNow travel specials, and a San Diego stop on Golf Channel’s amateur golf tour.
“Golf Channel continues to be dedicated to helping grow the game of golf. Working with organizations like the San Diego CVB to develop custom programs that showcase their golf destinations and increase bookings is one of our key focuses this year,” said Gene Pizzolato, chief operating officer for Golf Channel New Media Ventures. “This innovative partnership will cross all of the Golf Channel properties to give San Diego golf national exposure and visibility, and drive travel to the region.”
“We are very excited about our new partnership with the Golf Channel and, in particular, that San Diego will be a stop this year on the Golf Channel Am Tour,” said Joe Terzi, president & CEO of the San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau. “San Diego boasts some of the best golf courses in North America, including Torrey Pines, home of the 2008 U.S. Open. We look forward to the incredible international exposure this partnership will provide San Diego’s 93 golf courses and tourism-related businesses throughout the destination.”
The partnership will showcase a wide array of the areas golf courses and resorts, and include multiple promotional initiatives. These include:
• Ability to conveniently book exclusive tee times online at GolfNow.com. Golfers can simply go online 24/7, select their favorite San Diego area course, pick a tee time deal that fits their schedule and budget, and book it.
• GolfNow.com highlighting San Diego’ s golf courses, resorts and discount packages on the site’s new Stay & Play Guide.
• The GolfNow tee-time booking engine solution will be integrated into SanDiego.org, one of the most visited websites for travelers interested in visiting San Diego.
• A dedicated San Diego episode of Golf Channel’s GolfNow travel show. The show, titled GolfNow San Diego, will uncover the hidden gems and exhilarating adventures that make up the ultimate golf getaways in San Diego.
• The addition of the San Diego Open to the 2011 Golf Channel Am Tour, the largest amateur golf tour in North America. The two-day event will be held at the Rancho Bernado Inn and the Maderas Golf Club on March 12-13.
About Golf Channel
Golf Channel is a multimedia, golf entertainment and services company based in Orlando, Fla. The Golf Channel cable network, co-founded by Arnold Palmer and part of the NBC Sports Group, is available in more than 140 million homes worldwide through cable, satellite and wireless companies. Exclusive partnerships with the world’s top tours allow Golf Channel to feature more live golf coverage than all other networks combined, added to a programming schedule distinguished by golf’s best news, instruction and original programming. Golf Channel’s digital platform of businesses is led by www.GolfChannel.com, a leading golf destination on the Internet, delivering unmatched coverage of the world of golf, as well as services that help the recreational player with how to play, what to play and where to play golf.
About San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau
The San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau sells and markets San Diego County as a preferred vacation destination, and meeting and convention site. The San Diego region is home to 93 golf courses in every conceivable setting from the oceans to the mountains to the desert, including the internationally recognized Torrey Pines Golf Course, home of the 2008 U.S. Open. The courses feature designs from a “Who’s Who” of golf course architects, including Tom Fazio, Rees Jones, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Ted Robinson and more. San Diego County is also home to approximately 20 golf manufacturers, including the nationally recognized names Callaway, TaylorMade and Titleist Golf. For more information on San Diego’s golf offerings, visit www.sandiego.org/golf.
Contact:
Dan Higgins
Golf Channel Public Relations
407-355-4018
dhiggins@golfchannel.com
Matt Clark
Dan Klores Communications
212-981-5158
Matt_Clark@dkcnews.com
Joe Timko
San Diego CVB Public Relations
619-557-2812
jtimko@sdcvb.org
