Naming rights to the PGA Tour's Players Championship have never "been sold," and if organizers "have it their way, there likely will never be a title sponsor," according to Drew Dixon of the FLORIDA TIMES-UNION. PGA Tour Chief Commercial Officer Tom Wade said, "I don't see it ever having a title sponsor. ... This is a tournament that is right at the top of golf. We feel by not having a title in the name that it helps establish the players." PGA Tour CMO Ty Votaw said that the organization "simply sees no need to tamper" with naming rights. But Dixon notes blocking any title sponsor of the event "translates into a missed opportunity for huge revenues from a corporation willing to pay big money to be the brand associated with the tournament." However, while there "may be no title sponsor for The Players, there still are 400 sponsors -- or 'partners.'" Votaw and Wade both declined to provide revenue figures from those sponsors, but said that the event generates about $7.1M in "contributions to charitable causes." Tourney officials "have resorted to what’s called the 'proud partners.'" Those "focus primarily on two companies that will see the bulk" of TV ads during the tourney broadcast. Partners this year include PwC and Optum. Other big names "will dot the course" on banners and buildings. P&G is now "entering its second year of sponsorship," while Lexus has "supported the event for three years as have Bacardi and Interline Brands." Others such as Acosta, A-B, Southern Oak Insurance, Cox Media Group and FedEx "have been long-term supporters" (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 5/7). The AP's Doug Ferguson notes The Players is the "biggest event run by the biggest tour in golf." Ferguson: "The name needs an apostrophe. It's a championship that belongs to PGA Tour players. That should be enough" (AP, 5/6).
DRIVING RANGE: In Jacksonville, Steve Patterson noted The Players organizers were "talking about topping last year’s record crowd" of roughly 179,000 for the full week "before Tiger Woods committed to join the event and added another layer of celebrity and crowd-appeal." The Florida DOT on Monday said that people "should expect more than 100,000 fans between Thursday and Sunday." SP + Gameday Senior Manager Jeff Hinton, whose company manages tournament parking, said that "changing electronic message boards will be set up for traffic approaching the tournament, and they’ll aim drivers to the easement when it makes sense." He added that this will be "hard to schedule, but changes like that reduce traffic jams." Hinton said that drivers who "waited two hours to reach the tournament ... a few years ago might get there in 45 minutes now, because of a series of changes to traffic patterns made year upon year" (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 5/6).
