PGA Tour Champions and Dick’s Sporting Goods announced a three-year title sponsorship renewal of the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open through 2019.
“We are honored to continue the tradition of the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open right here in Binghamton where we opened our first store 68 years ago,” said Edward W. Stack, Chairman & CEO, Dick’s Sporting Goods. “There is a great deal of history in the Greater Binghamton area for our company and we are proud to help keep PGA Tour Champions golf in Upstate New York and give back to a community that means so much to us.”
Dick’s, which also owns and operates specialty golf retailer Golf Galaxy, first signed as the title sponsor of the PGA Tour Champions event in 2007. Since then, the tournament has helped raise more than $7 million for Broome County Community Charities, and has had an economic impact of more than $12.5 million for the area. The Company’s continued commitment to the tournament centers around giving back to the community where it began with its first store in 1948.
“We are pleased to announce this renewal after 10 years of Dick’s Sporting Goods serving as sponsor of this wonderful event,” said PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem. “The efforts of Ed Stack and his team have allowed this tournament to leave a strong charitable footprint in the area, and that impact will continue to grow with our joint support of the Sports Matter campaign.”
As part of this renewed partnership, the PGA Tour will support The Dick’s Sporting Goods Foundation’s Sports Matter campaign, an initiative that launched in 2014 to raise funds and awareness for the importance of youth sports and the current funding crisis across America. In addition to the PGA Tour’s donation to assist with relief efforts, The Dick’s Foundation has also donated $25,000 to West Virginia Secondary Schools Athletic Commission through Sports Matter to assist in the recovery efforts from the recent floods.
Dick’s will continue to hold naming rights to the Tour event, along with other partner benefits such as broadcast exposure, hospitality, on-site marketing and advertising opportunities through 2019.
Over the last decade, the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open has established a reputation as one of the top events on the annual PGA Tour Champions schedule, producing winners such as Jeff Maggert (2015) and World Golf Hall of Fame member Bernhard Langer (2014) over the last two years. Tournament venue En-Joie Golf Course hosted the PGA Tour’s B.C. Open from 1971 through 2005.
