Major stars to tee off in series of PowerPlay Golf TV events
City of Newport, Wales (April 13, 2011) – PowerPlay Golf today announced plans to increase golf’s appeal to a wider sporting TV audience, and the first stages of its strategy to roll-out an innovative nine hole, two-flag golf format to invigorate the sport.
Taking place next month, POWERPLAY GOLF: IGNITION is the first of a series of three unique televised professional golf tournaments, to be broadcast live worldwide in 2011. In POWERPLAY GOLF: IGNITION, sponsored by automobile manufacturer Saab, golf’s global ambassador Gary Player will headline the field. Reigning U.S. Open Champions Graeme McDowell and Paula Creamer, Ryder Cup stars Paul Casey and Ian Poulter, and Major Championship winners John Daly, Ian Woosnam and Helen Alfredsson will also be among the stellar field of 12 players competing at The Celtic Manor Resort, City Of Newport, Wales, on Monday, May 30.
Speaking at the launch at Celtic Manor, PowerPlay Golf spokesman Colin Montgomerie, OBE, eight time Order of Merit winner, winner of 40 tournaments worldwide and Europe’s victorious captain in the 2010 Ryder Cup, said: “Stand by for something very special. Golf around the world is about to discover a new dimension. We believe the time is right to launch a new format which complements the long form of the game, and adds fresh impetus to the sport. To have the support of Gary Player, who is a golfing icon, is deeply significant. ”
New Format
PowerPlay Golf is an exciting new short form of the game that will captivate all TV sports fans. Played over nine holes, with two flags on every green, golfers use a limited number of ‘PowerPlays’ to score extra points when aiming at the harder black flag, creating exciting risk-and-reward decisions on each tee. In the UK, POWERPLAY GOLF: IGNITION will be broadcast live on Sky Sports, with dozens of other global TV networks ensuring that the event will reach millions of homes worldwide. The international field contains no fewer than six Major-winners with 15 Major wins and over 300 Tour victories between them. The winner of the nine-hole tournament in May will receive £100,000 ($163,000 U.S.) from a £350,000 ($570,000 U.S.) prize fund, and PowerPlay Golf will also donate a further 20% of each player’s prize money to the charity of their choice. Working together with international sports marketing giants IMG, PowerPlay Golf will stage its second and third PowerPlay Golf events in Asia on November 7 and in the United States on November 25, each featuring an eclectic 12-person field of male and female golf stars of all ages. Guy Kinnings, Director of IMG Golf EMEA, added: “IMG are very pleased to be partnering PowerPlay Golf in the staging of this inaugural PowerPlay Golf: Ignition event. With The Celtic Manor Resort providing a wonderful showcase for this intriguing new format, we believe along with the stellar field gathered and the media platforms in place, that PowerPlay Golf has all the ingredients to make a big impact in the game.”
Saab To Sponsor POWERPLAY GOLF: IGNITION
David Pugh, Marketing Director at Saab Great Britain Ltd, commented: “At Saab, we have always challenged convention and looked for new ways of doing things, and we immediately recognized that same spirit in PowerPlay Golf. We know that our customers are intellectually curious and always searching for new experiences and challenges – we have no doubt that they will be intrigued by the new PowerPlay Golf format and will want to try it for themselves here in the UK. We look forward to working with PowerPlay Golf to develop this exciting new form of the sport.”
Appetite for change
In late 2010, after a three-year pilot in 30 countries, PowerPlay Golf secured significant investment from multi-sports group Convers Sports Initiatives, to roll out the two-flag game globally. “Convers Sports Initiatives is expanding rapidly and PowerPlay Golf is a flagship property for us,” said the company’s Chairman, Vladimir Antonov. The high-profile live TV events are expected to act as the catalyst for a growing network of PowerPlay Golf Official Venues, meaning that every golfer in the world will soon have the opportunity to play the game. The appetite for a fresh new approach for golf is backed up by research, which shows that more than seven in ten golfers believe the sport would benefit from a shorter, faster format. That rises to more than 84% of younger players who say a version of the sport with an emphasis on excitement would appeal to them.
Good for the game
Aside from attracting TV viewers with three hours of guaranteed sporting drama, PowerPlay Golf promises to have a positive effect at all levels of the game, as Executive Director Peter McEvoy OBE explains: “In Saab, we have attracted a new sponsor to the sport. We are also going to reinvest money into the sport globally by working with the Golf Unions and Federations, helping to increase the amount of golf played and bringing much-needed extra revenue into golf clubs.” Significantly Paul Casey and three other POWERPLAY GOLF: IGNITION competitors have agreed to make a donation from their PowerPlay Golf prize money to their home Union or Federation, in recognition of the support they personally received as a developing golfer.
Champions excited
The superstars set to compete in POWERPLAY GOLF: IGNITION at Celtic Manor are thrilled to be taking part and are attracted by the concept. Fifty years since he became the first international winner of The Masters, golfing legend and nine-time Major winner Gary Player said: “You are standing in the middle of the 18th fairway at Augusta National tied for the lead; what do you do? Do you go for the pin? If you it hit it right you make birdie and win. If you don’t, you make bogey and lose. Risk versus Reward – one of the toughest decisions a champion has to make. PowerPlay Golf is an exciting new competitive format where golfers attack tougher pin positions to achieve better scores. Now you can experience true risk versus reward on every hole and find out if you have the mind to manage the course correctly and take the right risks at the right time.” Graeme McDowell, the reigning U.S. Open and Saab Wales Open champion who is returning to the venue where he enjoyed so much success and drama last year, said: “I am really excited about playing PowerPlay Golf Ignition and to return to Celtic Manor to do so is the icing on the cake. Creating a three hour risk-and-reward shoot-out live for TV is a great idea and I am sure we will all be going full-on to win.” Likewise U.S. Women’s Open Champion Paula Creamer is delighted to be playing and commented, “I am really looking forward to taking part in PowerPlay Golf. It is wonderful that the event has such a great mix of players from the different tours. Golf needs something different and the PowerPlay Golf live TV events are certainly going to put our sport in the spotlight.”
Additional information about PowerPlay Golf, including a video of the press conference, may be found at www.PowerPlay-Golf.com or by calling +44 (0)1564 330684.
PowerPlay Golf® is a 9-hole golfing format in which golfers choose to aim for one of two flags on the green – a White Flag and a Black (‘PowerPlay’) Flag. The format is ideal for TV, enabling broadcasters to televise a complete golf tournament in less than three hours, and to increase golfing TV audiences. In the game, golfers have limited PowerPlays, and score extra points for net birdie or better when playing to the Black Flag, thereby creating extra pressure. Golf clubs become PowerPlay Golf® Official Venues by registering on the PowerPlay Golf® website, whereupon they are sent a Club Pack containing PowerPlay Golf® flags and other branded materials. Golfers can register online to earn PowerPlay Dollars, enabling them to climb the PPG World Rankings and compete in user-generated PowerPlay Golf® Leagues both locally and around the world. CONTACT: Jacqui Baldwin, +44 (0)1564 330684 / info@powerplay-golf.com.
About Saab (http://media.saab.com/)
Saab, or Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget (Swedish Aircraft Company), was founded in 1937 as an aircraft manufacturer and revealed its first prototype passenger car 10 years later after the formation of the Saab Car Division. In 1990, Saab Automobile AB was created as a separate company, jointly owned by the Saab Scania Group and General Motors, and became a wholly-owned GM subsidiary in 2000. In February 2010, Spyker Cars N.V. of the Netherlands, acquired the company from GM as an independently-run business. Saab cars reflect the brand’s unique Scandinavian design ethic, which is fused with its aircraft engineering heritage. The company is a global premium car maker with a distinguished history of innovation. It is recognized for its pioneering role in turbocharging, as well as occupant safety and the introduction of flex-fuel technology through Saab BioPower. Saab Automobile AB currently employs approximately 3,800 staff in Sweden, where it operates world-class production and technical development facilities at its headquarters in TrollhÄttan, 70 km north of Gothenburg. CONTACT: Saab Automobile Press Office, Tel: +46 (0)520 279797.
About Convers Sports Initiatives (www.converssport.com)
London-based businessmen Vladimir Antonov and Roman Dubov, Chairman and President respectively of Convers Sports Initiatives (CSI) (www.converssport.com) together with their partner Chris Akers, the former CEO of Leeds United, acquired a controlling interest in PowerPlay Golf in November 2010. Mr Antonov, 35, Mr Dubov, 36, and Mr Akers, 46, manage the commercial development of a growing portfolio of sporting brands through CSI, including: the Ferrari Team Russia race team; the Spyker Squadron motorsports team; North One Sport, the global promoters of the World Rally Championship (WRC); the Isle of Man TT race series; and the Velux 5 Oceans Race and Clipper Round the World sailing events. In 2011 CSI also acquired control of DBG Convers, a specialist in developing social networks, mobile applications and new media solutions for sports and entertainment brands and personalities including David Haye, as well as a 65 per cent share of Executive Sport Limited, the parent company of the “Leaders in Football” conference.
About IMG (www.imgworld.com)
Worldwide is a global sports, entertainment and media business, with nearly 3,000 employees operating in 30 countries around the globe. IMG’s areas of expertise are diverse and wide ranging. IMG College is the leader in collegiate marketing, licensing and media rights. IMG’s Joint Ventures, IMG Reliance and IMG CCTV, in the emerging markets of India and China, offer the company significant long-term growth opportunities. IMG Media is the world’s largest independent producer and distributor of sports programming. IMG Events and Federations owns and manages some of the most sought after events and includes long standing associations with the world’s most important sports organizations, leagues, and federations. IMG Fashion owns and operates fashion events around the world and IMG Models represents the world’s top models, leading designers and the most influential photographers, art directors and stylists. For the past 50 years IMG Clients has been the global leader in talent representation, including over 1,000 elite athletes, coaches, industry executives and prestigious sports organizations across the sports, entertainment, fashion and media industries. IMG Academies is the world’s largest and most advanced multi-sport training and educational facility delivering sports training experiences to more than 12,000 dedicated athletes from approximately 80 countries every year. IMG Consulting connects many of the world’s leading brands with consumers through access to unique sports and entertainment properties. IMG Licensing is considered one of the premier independent licensing agencies in the sports, entertainment and media world. More information is available at www.imgworld.com.
About The European Tour (www.europeantour.com)
The PGA European Tour, a company limited by guarantee, operates a broad range of business initiatives essential to its primary mission of administering professional tournament golf. It is a unique business which generates profits for the benefit of the Members – the tournament players – who receive their dividends by way of competing and winning prize money. George O’Grady, the Chief Executive of The European Tour, heads the administration staff of 155 based at headquarters in Wentworth, Surrey, England, with a Board of Directors comprising 12 elected past and present Tour Members and a Tournament Committee of 15 players. The growth and development of The European Tour is well documented. The European Tour International Schedule, which from 2009 incorporated The Race to Dubai, consisted in 2010 of 48 tournaments in 27 destinations with prize money of Ì¢?åÂ132,204,838 compared to a total prize fund of Ì¢?åÂ350,000 when the Tour was born in 1972. The European Challenge Tour and the European Senior Tour had prize funds of Ì¢?åÂ4,826,454 and Ì¢?åÂ9,078,267 respectively in 2010. The European Challenge Tour consisted of 25 tournaments in 18 countries and the European Senior Tour 20 tournaments in 15 countries. The funds drawn from sponsors and suppliers, television and ticket sales, hospitality and governments, support a thriving international community in which The European Tour actively promotes the game at all levels. The European Tour is committed to celebrating the game of golf from the origins of the professional game – building a proud history of achievement, sportsmanship and integrity – to showcasing our diverse global talent and rich landscapes. The European Tour’s innovative approach enables us to embrace the world, combining championships of tradition with new tournaments in the cities and countries of the future.
About the Saab Wales Open (www.saabwalesopen.com)
Automobile manufacturer Saab took over title sponsorship of the Saab Wales Open in 2011 from The Celtic Manor Resort, which continues to be the host venue and event promoter. The tournament was the first European Tour event to be staged in Wales for a decade when Steen Tinning won the inaugural event in 2000. Prize money has more than doubled in the 11 years since with a roll call of champions which includes Ryder Cup stars Paul Lawrie, Paul McGinley, Ian Poulter, Miguel Angel Jiménez, Robert Karlsson and Graeme McDowell. The tournament was held on the Wentwood Hills course from 2000-2004 before switching to The Celtic Manor Resort’s Roman Road course from 2005-2007 as work was carried out on the new Twenty Ten Course. The Twenty Ten, the first course ever to be purpose built to host The Ryder Cup, took over the staging of the championship from 2008. The Saab Wales Open strives to offer visitors more than just a golf tournament and one of the largest hospitality pavilions on The European Tour is complemented by a tented village of attractions for all spectators to enjoy. Previous winners: 2010, Graeme McDowell; 2009, Jeppe Huldahl; 2008, Scott Strange; 2007, Richard Sterne; 2006, Robert Karlsson; 2005,Miguel Angel Jiménez; 2004, Simon Khan; 2003, Ian Poulter; 2002, Paul Lawrie; 2001, Paul McGinley; 2000, Steen Tinning.In 2011, Saab Golf Week tees off early with PowerPlay Golf: Ignition Driven by Saab taking place on Bank Holiday Monday, May 30. For further information, visit www.saabwalesopen.com. CONTACT: Paul Williams, PR Manager, The Celtic Manor Resort, T: 01633 410288, M: 07920 058251, E: paulwilliams@celtic-manor.com.
About The Celtic Manor Resort (www.celtic-manor.com)
Host venue of The Ryder Cup in 2010, the five-star Celtic Manor Resort is set in more than 1,400 acres of wooded parkland at the gateway to Wales. With two hotels – a 330-room luxury Resort Hotel and an historic 19th century Manor House with 70 rooms – two exceptional spas, two state-of-the-art health clubs, a shooting school, fishing, tennis courts, mountain biking, walking trails and six outstanding restaurants, The Celtic Manor Resort provides a complete experience for business, leisure and golf travellers. In 2005 and for four years running from 2007 to 2010, the Resort has been voted the UK’s Top Conference Hotel by readers of Conference and Incentive Travel Magazine and it is Europe’s Golf Resort of the Year for 2011, chosen by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators. The Resort is the home of the Saab Wales Open, one of the premier events on The European Tour, and offers the challenge of three 18-hole championship golf courses, including the new Twenty Ten course, the first course in history to be designed and built specifically to host The Ryder Cup. For more information visit: www.celtic-manor.com.
Contact:
Press-UK: David Silvers, Professional Sports Group
Tel: +44 (0)1276 858930 Email: david@profsports.com
Press-U.S.: Karen Moraghan, Hunter Public Relations
908/963-6013 Email: kmoraghan@hunter-pr.com
PowerPlay Golf: Jacqui Baldwin
Tel: +44 (0)1564 330684 Email: jacqui@powerplay-golf.com
Web: www.powerplay-golf.com
