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Marketing and Sponsorship

Aon Launching New Season-Long Contest For PGA Tour, LPGA

Aon is making a major marketing splash in golf with a sponsorship deal with both the PGA Tour and the LPGA that includes an eye-popping $1M prize to a player from each tour as part of a newly created competition called the “Aon Risk Reward Challenge.” The season-long “Risk Reward Challenge” is the major component of the eight-year deal and will be open to players on both tours, though specific participation details must still be finalized. The contest calls for players on both tours to accumulate a season-long score from one selected “strategically challenging” hole across 28 PGA Tour events and 30 LPGA events beginning next season. The player from each tour with the top score will be awarded the $1M prize. Final details on the scoring and schedule will be released later this year, but competition will be held in each year of the deal and also will be featured during PGA Tour broadcasts on CBS and on LPGA broadcasts on Golf Channel. Financial terms of the sponsorship were not disclosed, but the deal represents a significant new investment in golf from Aon, which already has an array of global sports sponsorships, but until now limited its past financial involvement in golf mostly to hospitality. “It is a big step for us,” said Aon CMO Andy Weitz. “We approached both properties last fall and brought to them this concept. We felt it was an authentic fit to the sport and how we create value to clients. It was an opportunity to create a truly global platform.”

REAL BOOST FOR LPGA PLAYERS: For LPGA players, the $1M prize from the new program is roughly triple the amount of a winner’s purse for a typical tour event. It also puts the LPGA on the same prize money level with the PGA Tour, which Weitz and LPGA execs said is an important component of the deal. “It is a huge step to have a sponsor willing to pay out that kind of money on both tours,” said LPGA Chief Commercial Officer Jon Podany, “It is a big earning opportunity for our tour and hopefully it will encourage others. This just reinforces the positive momentum we have had this year.” Weitz added it was "important to put female and male players on equal footing." He said, "The terms of the competition will be the same on the tours and the prize money should be as well.” Other assets of the deal include a media buy on both tours while Aon becomes the official risk, retirement, and health advisor of the PGA Tour and the official professional services firm of the LPGA. The deal comes after the PGA Tour and the LPGA in '16 created a strategic alliance to grow the game. “The PGA Tour is firmly behind initiatives that engage fans on a global basis,” said PGA Tour Exec VP/Corporate Partnerships Brian Oliver. “We highly value our alliance with the LPGA and will always look for ways to continue to grow the partnership for the good of the game.” Neither the LPGA nor the PGA Tour used agencies on the deal while Aon would not comment on whether they engaged any agencies on their side of the deal.

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