Barbasol will title sponsor a new PGA Tour event in '15 that will be played opposite the British Open. A four-year deal was announced yesterday for the Barbasol Championship, which will be played at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at Grand National near Opelika, Ala. The tournament will take place July 13-19 and will be included in the season-long race for the FedExCup (PGA Tour). In Birmingham, Mike Cason notes it will be the first PGA Tour event in Alabama "since the PGA Championship was held at Shoal Creek in Birmingham" in '90. Alabama Tourism Dir Lee Sentell said that the state will "provide $200,000 to $250,000 to help stage the event." PGA Tour Exec VP & COO Andy Pazder said that it is "possible the Barbasol Championship could move to one of the other RTJ courses during the initial four-year run." Pazder said that about 70 PGA Tour players "usually play in the British Open, which would leave 130 available for the Barbasol Championship." The Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Miss., had been held opposite the British Open in recent years, but the event moved to November as part of the new wraparound PGA Tour schedule (BIRMINGHAM NEWS, 8/12). Opelika Mayor Gary Fuller said that the city "wouldn’t have to contribute anything toward the tournament, but that it would encourage residents to get involved." Meanwhile, Auburn Mayor Bill Ham said that Auburn Univ. would "have an opportunity to be involved in the tournament" (OPELIKA-AUBURN NEWS, 8/12).
KICKING THE TIRES: Bridgestone yesterday announced a deal with the PGA Tour to title sponsor the inaugural America's Golf Cup, a team format event featuring PGA Tour players alongside members of PGA Tour Latinoamerica. The first iteration of the event will be held at Pilar Golf Club in Buenos Aires in October. Tiger Woods and Matt Kuchar will represent the U.S., while Angel Cabrera and Andres Romero have agreed to represent Argentina. The unofficial money event will feature a purse of $600,000 (PGA Tour).
