The PGA Tour is opening an office in London that is "already operational with prime focus on media rights and tournament sponsorship," according to Ewan Murray of the GUARDIAN. Sources said that having an office in London "is sensible given the global sponsorship market and, for example, an existing relationship with Sky Sports to cover 31 events per year." However, Murray notes the "clear undertone is that the PGA Tour will seek to court sponsors who might otherwise be attracted to European Tour events." Given the "fiscal power the PGA Tour has already displayed ... this is an intriguing business move." The sense that golf is "edging towards one global tour is impossible to ignore, as is the fact the PGA Tour clearly regards London as an important commercial hub." New business partners for golf have "generally been hard to come by." In addition to the PGA Tour's HQ in Ponte Verde Beach, it also "has existing offices in Beijing and Tokyo" (THEGUARDIAN.com, 5/16).
INTERNATIONAL FLAIR: In Jacksonville, Garry Smits notes South Korea's Si Woo Kim is the eighth winner of The Players in the last 12 years "to come from outside the U.S." That is "more than the international winners in the four major championships over the same span." Kim beat South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen and England's Ian Poulter, marking the "first time in tournament history that Americans were shut out of the top three" (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 5/16).
