M
imi Griffin, whose agency has overseen corporate hospitality at the U.S. Open for the last 18 years, has very specific memories of this year’s golf championship at Merion.
“It was the hardest U.S. Open I’ve ever worked, but it also was the most rewarding,” Griffin said. “I’d liken it to child birth: It hurt like hell, but something really special came from it.”
Because of its unique setup and awkward layout, Merion left that kind of impression on a lot of visitors, but Griffin’s MSG Promotions responded with several innovative ideas for hospitality.
Griffin grew up in Philadelphia reading Forbes and Sports Illustrated, so a career in sports business seemed destined. During her spring break as an MBA student at Lehigh University, she visited a friend who worked at Manufacturers Hanover. She later connected with Charlie McCabe, who ran marketing for the bank, and that led to a job and connections throughout the golf industry.
Now the agency she started in 1983 runs hospitality for the USGA and several other sporting events.
— Michael Smith
“Mimi has built a top-shelf marketing and management company at MSG Promotions. Her professionalism, the skills of her team, and the introduction and mentorship of hundreds of young men and women to high-quality, full-service corporate hospitality and entertainment has raised both the level of expectation by clients and the level of service across the industry.”
— Mike Butz | Senior managing director, Open championships
and association relations | U.S. Golf Association