Iowa-based sports marketing startup BIDGP.com is selling seven spots for "placement of mini corporate logos on three players" at this year's PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club from Aug. 4-10, according to Jere Downs of the Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL. The company is "selling the logo space on the shirt" of golfers Jerry Kelly, Colin Montgomerie and Thomas Bjorn. BIDGP.com President Brian Kardell said that logo costs "run between $10,000 to $20,000 each for a week." Kardell added that participating golf pros "get a cut" of profits, but he declined to identify the percentages. Downs noted pricing for each logo space is a "result of the player's ranking, and name recognition" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 7/30).
TENT OFFENSIVE: In Louisville, Steve Jones reports a "major merchandise tent" will open this weekend at Valhalla. The "38,000-square-foot Championship Shops" will sell t-shirts, hats and other souvenirs for next week's PGA Championship with "no tournament ticket required on Saturday and Sunday." The "largest merchandise tent ever built for a PGA Championship is centrally located on the golf course and figures to be a major hub of traffic." The tent is "expected to conduct 90,000 to 100,000 transactions." Constructed over the past six weeks, the Championship Shops -- complete with flooring, air conditioning and bright lighting -- "feels more like a department store than a tent." It is the "size of a football field" and has mini-shops for major brands, including Nike, adidas, Ralph Lauren, Under Armour Greg Norman, Cutter & Buck and New Era. There are "40 cash registers and about 600 volunteers working at the tent" (Louisville COURIER-JOURNAL, 7/31).
