Early in the week, the LPGA lost the sponsorship of Anheuser-Busch for its Michelob Ultra Open Championship. This is one in a series of businesses that has decided, in a struggling economy, to use its marketing dollars elsewhere. This has depressing implications for cities like San Antonio which would like to be included as a stop on the LPGA tour.
The reality is that the LPGA is struggling to maintain its sponsorships and developing new events may be unrealistic:
“… It was perhaps the toughest blow for a tour that has now lost seven events since 2007. Next year’s May schedule, which was set to include the Michelob, Corning Classic and Sybase Classic — all dead or dying — now looms as little more than practice time for players.
Indeed, the LPGA currently has only 17 events nailed down for next year, half of what 2008 offered.
And that comes on the heels of but 27 tour stops this year, the lowest number since 1971.”
link to the article by Richard Oliver for the San Antonio Express News
[...] in Featured Articles on 09 30th, 2009 | no responses In a tough economy, the LPGA has been struggling to keep sponsors. The number of events is down for next year. One of the challenges before acting commissioner Marty [...]