Mitsubishi Electric will be the sponsor of the Champions Tour’s season-opening golf event at Hualalai through 2015.

The PGA Tour and Mitsubishi Electric announced the extension on Monday of the Mitsubishi Electric Championship, which will be held Jan. 16-22, 2012, and features a field of the past two seasons’ tournament champions and past five years of senior major championship winners.

The tournament on Hawaii island has been the tee-off point of the season for the Champions Tour since 1997. During that span, the tournament has made economic and charitable contributions to the community.

Almost $650,000 has been donated to various Hawaii island charities, including $55,000 this year to the Rotary Club of Kona. The funds will assist the Keiki Eye Vision Program to help identify vision difficulties early in a child’s development.

John Cook, a three-time winner on the Champions Tour in 2011, is the defending champion of the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai.

Hyundai event launches charitable ticket program

The Hyundai Tournament of Champions has launched a new program that will allow local charities to promote ticket sales for the season-opening PGA Tour event and keep all the proceeds.

The Golf for Maui Charities gives 501c3 organizations the opportunity to promote ticket sales for the event, which will be held Jan. 5-9 at The Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort.

All 501c3 organizations interested in being a part of this program can contact the Hyundai Tournament of Champions office at 808-665-9160 or toll-free at 888-665-9160.

All children 18 and younger are admitted free of charge with a ticketed adult (one child per adult). All children over the age of 18 must have a ticket to enter the tournament.