IMG Worldwide yesterday announced the acquisition of IGP Sports & Entertainment Group. The acquisition will see IGP’s properties, including management of the PGA Tour Honda Classic, and its staff led by President & CEO Ken Kennerly, join IMG’s Golf division immediately. Kennerly will head up IMG Golf's North American events division. IMG Golf also will open a new office in North Palm Beach, Fla. (IMG). In West Palm Beach, Hal Habib notes Kennerly and IMG Golf Global co-Managing Dir Guy Kinnings "agreed that the tournament’s 32-year-old deal with Honda as title sponsor will remain intact, as will the event’s connections to Jack Nicklaus’ Children’s Health Care Foundation." If "anything changes," Kennerly and Kinnings said that they "hope that IMG’s reach might make it easier for Kennerly to continue to attract top-level talent such as Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy." IMG’s clients include "local players Luke Donald, Ernie Els and Camilo Villegas." Although Woods has "dropped IMG as his longstanding agency, Kinnings said he doubts Monday’s news will affect his participation in future Honda Classics." IMG will "join Kennerly’s team of 14," and eventually, the staff is "expected to expand, like the event itself." Kennerly: “We’ve got a lot of room to grow. We’re going to continue to improve upon it every year. With this new association, I think this gives us the tools to certainly make that happen" (PALM BEACH POST, 4/16).
