Buick-Tiger Breakup Signals Trouble For Golf, Sports Sponsorships

Woods, General Motors Began Discussions About Ending Their Pact Earlier This Year

The termination of Buick's sponsorship deal with golfer Tiger Woods one year before the deal was set to expire "ought to be yet another harsh warning that golf at the professional level is in for a rough ride," according to Bob Harig of ESPN.com. The breakup is "ominous for the golf world, which has already seen Buick cut back on its long-standing commitment to provide courtesy cars for players and officials at numerous PGA Tour events" in '09. While PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem earlier this month "announced a fully-sponsored schedule" for next season, what "went unsaid is how golf tournaments will be affected at the lower levels of title sponsorship." Though smaller sponsorships do not require the $7M "or so necessary to be a title sponsor, big money -- often six-figure fees -- is spent on hospitality tents or corporate chalets." Harig: "Doesn't it seem logical that these companies would cut back, too?" (ESPN.com, 11/24). GOLFWEEK wrote the GM's decision to drop Woods, the "most-visible face of the Buick brand since January 2000, speaks volumes about the deteriorating economic climate for manufacturing and, perhaps, golf." Buick Golf Marketing Manager Larry Peck: "Our budgets are being reduced. Most likely the money we are now saving will be put towards budget savings or cost elimination." GM VP/North America Vehicle Sales & Marketing Mark LaNeve indicated that GM and Woods "started discussing an end to the deal earlier this year, and it had nothing to do with GM's quest" for $25B in federal loans for the automobile industry (GOLFWEEK.com, 11/24). Golf Channel's Adam Barr: "It makes sense to GM to go and say please let’s go ahead and wrap this up a little early” ("Golf Central," Golf Channel, 11/24).

TAKING A DROP: Peck said of ending the partnership, "Timing is everything. We've had such a great partnership with Tiger. It's hard for us to walk away from that. But this frees up time for him. And it sure frees up a lot of money for us." Woods' agent, IMG's Mark Steinberg, said the breakup was a "combination of things." Steinberg: "Tiger was looking to gain some more time, and certainly, it was an opportunity for GM to reduce its spending with everything going on." In N.Y., Holly Sanders writes Buick used Woods in ad efforts as it "tried to give the nameplate a more youthful image." Peck noted that company research indicated 78% of consumers who purchased a Buick Enclave "previously had not been Buick owners." Peck: "We attribute awareness of our product to Tiger" (N.Y. POST, 11/25). GM Dir of Communications for Sales, Service & Marketing Peter Ternes said of Woods, "He expressed an interest in growing his own Tiger brand and we have been looking for marketing savings." Steinberg said of Woods' future endorsements, "We've put together a plan, but it's nothing that I'm going to discuss at this time" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 11/24).

BAG IT UP: As a result of the breakup, Buick no longer will have its logo on Woods' bag, and in L.A., Mike James wrote, "You can expect competition for the newly available space, considering that whenever Woods is playing, his bag probably gets more TV exposure than that of any other player in the field" (LATIMES.com, 11/24). Golf Channel's Barr said, "You have got to believe Nike would at least raise its eyebrows and take a look." However, with Woods "already so well identified as a Nike athlete that may not be necessary for either side." Barr: "How about a carmaker that’s not in trouble, or not in as much trouble, somebody say like Mercedes Benz? Or some international carmaker that wants to get its image with a high-end player, or the highest-end player?” ("Golf Central," Golf Channel, 11/24). 

GM Officials Say Buick Will Continue To Sponsor Two PGA Tour Events

WHAT IT MEANS FOR BUICK: Ternes, when asked if Buick will renew its PGA Tour sponsorships in 2010, said, "Hopefully the market will come back and we won't have to make any more cuts" (USA TODAY, 11/25). In Detroit, Carlos Monarrez notes in order to "boost interest" in this year's Buick Open, the company gave a sponsor's exemption to golfer John Daly, while musician Kid Rock was invited to play with Daly in the event's pro-am. Peck did not reveal if "more such promotions were in the works or if Buick would endorse another high-profile golfer." Peck also noted that Woods "wasn't required to play in any of Buick's PGA Tour events" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 11/25). Buick insisted that it will continue to serve as title sponsor for both the Buick Open and the Buick Invitational, and Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade said, "Sometimes it’s worth it to go into debt to move forward. You got to stay out there in some way” (“Fox & Friends,” Fox News, 11/25). Meanwhile, Blue Jays President & CEO Paul Godfrey said that GM "already has quit the Blue Jays" (TORONTO STAR, 11/25).

ODD COUPLE: The AP's Tim Dahlberg writes Woods "could never sell cars for Buick, no matter how hard he tried." Buick in '99, the year it first signed Woods, sold 445,611 vehicles, but the company sold just 185,791 cars last year and "this year is going to be much worse." The partnership was an "odd pairing to begin with, this marriage of stodgy car company and the hottest young athlete in the world." Did anyone "really believe that the richest athlete in the world would choose to drive a car favored mostly by people old enough to be his grandparents if he wasn’t getting paid millions to do so?" (AP, 11/25). GOLF.com's Michael Walker Jr. wrote the "real surprise is that GM ever used Woods to promote its Buick brand in the first place." Aside from the fact that "no one believed Tiger would choose of his volition to drive a Buick," the kind of people "who drive Buick's aren't generally in Tiger's demographic" (GOLF.com, 11/24). CNBC's Darren Rovell: "You can't believe that Tiger -- if given a choice -- would really drive a Buick? ... It's not reasonable to think a guy who is as rich as he is would want to drive a Buick" (CNBC.com, 11/24). Sports Business Group President David Carter said Woods "may not have been the prototypical Buick driver" (GLOBE & MAIL, 11/25). In N.Y., David Hinckley writes it "seems clear Woods was no longer drawing enough people to Buick to justify what GM was paying him" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 11/25). But UCLA marketing professor Dominique Hanssens said that GM could "continue to see some benefit from the association for a few years to come." Hanssens: "They've done this for some time, so the association in the public is probably already there" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 11/25).

Woods-Buick Breakup Underscores State Of Sports During Economic Downturn

SIGN OF THE TIMES: In San Jose, Mark Purdy writes, "The world changed Monday. Sports finally met the 2008 economy, head to head, single elimination. And the economy won." If Woods, the "country's top sports figure is having his commercial gravy bowl drained by $7[M], no one else is safe." Woods is just the "latest sports entity to feel the economic squeeze" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 11/25). In S.F., Gwen Knapp writes the breakup "dramatically underscored the state of sports in a floundering economy," and if the "global crisis didn't spare Woods, nobody is safe" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 11/25). CBS’s Maggie Rodriguez: "The bigger question is, is this the end of an era for these big sports stars endorsing automakers?” (“The Early Show,” CBS, 11/25). The issue of sports sponsorships, including the Woods-Buick deal and Citigroup's 20-year naming-rights deal to the new Mets ballpark, was discussed on NBC's "Nightly News" last night. NBC's Mike Taibbi noted that the next three Olympic host locations -- Vancouver, London and Sochi -- are "worried about the affects of a long-term worldwide financial meltdown." But while the sports world "isn’t recession-proof, it’s likely to remain recession-resistant because sports fans … are a target advertisers will find irresistible as long as they have advertising dollars to spend" ("Nightly News," NBC, 11/24).