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Fizzy spell: PGA seals 10-year drink tie-up

PETER STONE

16 Dec, 2008 01:00 AM

WITH the economic screws tightening on golf sponsorship, yesterday's announcement by the PGA of Australia of a 10-year, multimillion-dollar deal with Coca-Cola Amatil was a real coup.

The company will become the PGA's premier partner and official beverage supplier under an agreement that starts on January 1. It is some deal, considering the newly completed Australian Open went ahead without a naming rights sponsor and the Australian Masters at Huntingdale three weeks ago secured its naming rights sponsor - Sportsbet - only at the 11th hour.

The PGA's 19-year affiliation with Cadbury Schweppes ends this year, and the association has been quick off the mark to secure a new deal. No doubt there will be some envious folk at Golf Australia headquarters in Melbourne.

Peter Lonard, a three-time winner of the Australian PGA and himself a former PGA club professional, was there at the official signing of the agreement between PGA chief executive Max Garske and CCA Australian and New Zealand managing director Warwick White.

And it would have helped that White is a keen golfer himself. He got his handicap down to three at one stage, but that has drifted out since he became head of Australia's largest beverage and food manufacturer. His father, Graeme, was the head of ABC sport in Australia and the first to bring tournament coverage to our televisions. "We are delighted to be partnering with an organisation that is excited about the future of the PGA and golf in general and is passionate about working with us on all aspects including junior development, tournaments and the marketing of professional golf," Garske said.

As part of the deal, Coke becomes the presenting sponsor of the PGA Championship, plus naming rights sponsor of the PGA national junior development program. Scholarships will be given to assist up-and-coming PGA professionals to take the next step in their tournament careers.

There are about 700 club professionals in Australia, and the PGA will ask them to stock the new sponsor's products exclusively.

GA was able to proceed with the Open championship without a naming rights sponsor this past week for two major reasons. Earlier this year, it signed a deal with NSW Events for the Open to be held in Sydney through to 2015 - with the exception of 2011, when there is an existing deal to play the event at Moonah Links, south of Melbourne.

And this year was the last of a deal signed 20 years ago by the late Christopher Skase, owner of Channel Seven at the time, with the then IMG (Australia) managing director James Erskine for Seven to pay for the rights to cover the Australian Masters, owned by IMG, and the Open, which was promoted and still organised by IMG.

The exact financial details have never been made public, but it is believed to have cost Seven more than $1 million a year for each tournament. That was split into an actual fee for the rights plus the costs incurred by the network to set up the massive TV production and telecast.

It was a unique deal for golf. Other tournaments through the years, such as the PGA Championship, which is now broadcast by Channel Ten, have paid $600,000 to $700,000 per tournament for the production costs.

That is unlike the AFL, rugby league and union and cricket, or the biggest events of the world, the Olympics and football World Cup, which command massive broadcasting rights. With the departure of Seven from golf, it leaves the only TV players as Ten and Fox Sports. Ten is now heavily into sport, with the introduction next year of its dedicated HD sports channel.