LPGA brings unique event to N.J. as Hamilton Farm Golf Club hosts Sybase tourney

Scheduled for May 20-23; aim is to create brand exposure and buzz

BY JOE FAVORITO

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

ON N.J. SPORTS MARKETING

While the PGA continues to search for its ratings and its consistent brand presence away from Tiger Woods, the LPGA is trying to make strides and cut its own path. Now it certainly has not been an easy year for the LPGA. The sudden retirement of Lorena Ochoa and the tragic and sudden death of Erica Blasburg last week have given the sport even more issues to deal with than anticipated, but under the leadership of new commissioner Mike Whan, the Tour is looking to cut a new swath of interest, fan activation and innovation.

The latest example will be next week (May 20-23) at Hamilton Farm Golf Club in Gladstone, N.J., when the Sybase Match Play Championship, the only LPGA event in 2010 close to the New York marketplace, comes to the area. So how is it different from the women's events that have taken place in Upper Montclair and Westchester over the years? Well, actually very different.

The first variation is in the format. Although a draw is familiar to tennis fans, it may be a bit foreign to the golfing diehards on the professional level. The players are seeded from a random draw, which also creates more anticipation and intrigue as the groups play down. The depth of the field, perhaps the deepest and most internationally diverse anywhere, will not just provide great head to head play, it will provide some interesting happenings once the field is pared down.

Why? Those 32 golfers who are eliminated will not just depart for the next event, which is what usually happens when players traditionally miss the cut. Those 32 will then be paired up in a Pro-am the next day, giving fans an extra opportunity to see some of the Tour's biggest and most personable names if they don't fare well in the original match play format. It is unconventional, but it serves as a great message to fans and to partners that the players are willing to find ways to go the extra mile to make the event a success.

While the last few years have brought turmoil on the brand side for event sponsors, 2010 seems to be bringing stability.

Why?

For sports like golf and tennis, especially on the women's side, the scramble seems to be on to both identify new partners who may have found the sports cost prohibitive in the past to gain brand exposure and are now willing to take the plunge, at a lower price point. As brokerage houses exit, brands looking to activate against the female demo enter. As cars companies retract, technology companies come in. Some may look to use the events as a one-off for new products or promotions; some may still have local or regional needs for entertainment and exposure or support.

Regardless of the reason, the perception is that the athlete of today tends to "get it" more with regard to their sponsorship opportunities and obligations, and may now be ready to go the extra mile to find ways to make the brand engagement and the spend successful.

Sybase is a great example. Unconventional format, new course and strategic area for the brand. The result is an LPGA event that may have fallen by the wayside in the past, but now may be a trailblazer in format and innovation, right here in New Jersey. While golf on the recreational side has not struggled mightily in the Garden State, the professional side is seeing an exit of top-level tournaments and with that exit comes the spillover into the local economy. Sybase hosting the LPGA event in New Jersey sends a strong message that the sport still needs the area, and the bounce it can get from Madison Avenue, now with a different format. The result is exposure for the brand, some buzz for the LPGA and maybe a sigh of relief that the worst may be over for golf, thanks to the reinvention and the attention to detail of its new leadership.

Joe Favorito has over 23 years of strategic communications/marketing, business development and public relations expertise in sports, entertainment, brand building, media training, television, athletic administration and business. Visit him at JoeFavorito.com.