Golf’s most iconic events are known simply by their name, and the Open, the Masters, the US Open, and the US PGA Championship need no introduction. Nor have they ever needed sponsorship, at least as far as the naming rights of the tournaments themselves. In an increasingly globalised, corporate, money-driven world, that is somewhat surprising. After all, many huge football clubs have sold naming rights for their stadia, while two of the women’s majors have commercial names. How long before we head to Augusta for the Tesla Masters?!
Thankfully, we suspect the majors will be able to resist the urge to sell their souls to the highest bidder – at least for a good while. However, almost all “regular” tournaments on both the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour do have corporate sponsorship. The nature of this varies between some events, and while some tournaments are billed as “in partnership with” or similar, others are simply known fully by the brand that sponsors them.
In this article, we will look at some of the longest-running tournament sponsorships from the PGA Tour. While some events seem to have a new sponsor every few years, other corporate partnerships have well and truly stood the test of time.
The One That got Away
For many years, the longest-running PGA Tour tournament sponsorship deal was for the Honda Classic. Founded in 1972, it was initially called the “Jackie Gleason’s Inverrary Classic” and over the next decade the tournament, held in Florida, changed name and sponsor several times.
However, in 1982, Japanese motor giants Honda took over, and they would remain the sponsor for 42 years, up to and including 2023. That made this agreement the longest of its type in golf. Honda opted to move on, declining to sponsor the event in the future, although the exact details of why and what both parties had requested moving forward are not known.
Honda stated that they were “focused on other tools to introduce our brand”, had “achieved” their goal of becoming an established brand in America and that their marketing had “evolved”.
From the tournament side of things, Andrew George, director of what became known from 2024 onwards as the Cognizant Classic, said that the event was “so appreciative of 42 years of title sponsorship”. He talked of the “impact they (Honda) made, $60 million plus to charity and helped us grow this to 200,000-plus on-site each year. Collectively as a community we own them a huge thank you.”
AT&T the Brand to Call
When Honda decided golf was no longer for them, AT&T automatically took over the mantle as the longest-serving tournament sponsor in the States. Their association with the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, founded in 1937, dates back to 1986. That makes it 40 years old, and assuming the US telecoms company stick with the event, it will soon surpass the previous benchmark set by Honda and the Classic.
The Pebble Beach Pro-Am was originally known as the Bing Crosby National Pro-Amateur and was hosted by the legendary entertainer and his brother for many years. Its long history, links with Crosby and the use of the iconic Pebble Beach courses, plus the fact that it is a pro-am – Bill Murray, Tom Brady and Justin Timberlake are just some of the celebrities to have taken part – all make it a rather special event.
John Deere Classic Approaches 30 Years
Another very longstanding sponsor on the PGA Tour is tractor giant John Deere. Beloved of farmers in the Midwest and indeed all over America (and the world), they have been the title sponsor of the event now held at TPC Deere Run, Illinois, since 1998, hosting their first tournament in 1999.
This event typically takes place before the Open Championship, and to help ensure the best field possible, the event has long chartered a plane to fly qualified players to the UK almost immediately after the conclusion of the Classic. Past winners include Bryson DeChambeau, Jordan Spieth and Steve Stricker, who won three in a row. In 2023, John Deere signed a “multi-year extension” to the deal that sees them sponsor the tournament, so it will stay for the foreseeable future.
RBC Loves Heritage
RBC, or the Royal Bank of Canada, has sponsored the Heritage (sometimes known as the Heritage or the Heritage Classic, but now the RBC Heritage) since 2012. This event takes place in South Carolina, typically in April, following the Masters.
However, RBC have a slightly longer association with their “home” open. The Royal Bank of Canada has sponsored the Canadian Open since 2008, taking over from Bell. That agreement is approaching the start of its third decade. RBC clearly have an interest in heritage and history too, as the Canadian Open was first played in 1904. Only the Open and the US Open better that in terms of the longest continuously running events.
Sony Open Another 20th Century Event
Joining the AT&T and John Deere-sponsored tournaments in the small group of PGA Tour events that have corporate partnerships dating back to the 20th century is the Sony Open in Hawaii. The Hawaiian Open was first played in 1965 and has generally been played at the Waialae Country Club in Honolulu.
It first took a named sponsor in 1991, when United Airlines became the event’s partner. In 1999, however, Sony took over, and the Sony Open in Hawaii was born. The event has been won by big names, including Ernie Els and, before that, Jack Nicklaus and Lee Trevino. It also garnered a lot of attention when Michelle Wie, a Honolulu native, was granted a sponsor’s invite, doing so for the first of four times when aged just 14.
Others of Note
There are several tournaments that have had the same sponsor since the first decade of the 21st century. These include:
- Valero Texas Open – sponsored by Valero Energy Corporation, a company based in San Antonio, the naming rights deal has been in place since 2002, though the event itself is over 100 years old
- Zurich Classic of New Orleans – this event was first played in 1938 but Zurich, the insurance giant, have had their name attached to it since 2005
- Travelers Championship – often referred to simply as the Travelers, this is another event sponsored by an insurance company. Established in 1952, The Travelers Companies, Inc. took over from Buick as the event sponsor in 2007
- Wyndham Championship – Wyndham Hotels & Resorts have sponsored this event since 2007. The tournament was first played in 1938 and was called the Greater Greensboro Open. Sam Snead has won it a record eight times