Kapalua tournament loses Hyundai as sponsor

While the end of Hyundai’s sponsorship of the Tournament of Champions isn’t expected to have much immediate impact, it poses long-term questions for PGA Tour golf in Hawaii.

The automaker announced Wednesday it will vacate a six-year association at Kapalua to become the title sponsor of a PGA Tour event at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles beginning next year. It will replace the Northern Trust Open, which becomes part of the Fed Ex Cup playoffs in 2017.

The move from Maui comes as the winners-only T of C has enjoyed a resurgence with some young marquee players, including champion Jordan Spieth, and a decade-high in TV ratings.

The event delivered 905,000 viewers per minute, up 91 percent from 2015, the Golf Channel said.

SBS, formerly known as the Seoul Broadcasting System, has a contract with the PGA Tour to provide sponsorship that runs through 2019.

“We thank Hyundai for its many years of sponsorship and support of professional golf in Hawaii. The PGA Tour has assured us that the Tournament of Champions will take place at Kapalua Resort in 2017,” Hawaii Tourism Authority President and CEO George D. Szigeti said in a statement.

“Short term it will be fine but long term, yes, I’m concerned,” said Mark Rolfing, TV golf analyst, former Kapalua pro and an adviser to the HTA. “It needs to be looked at from the 50,000-foot level as far as what is the long term right thing to do and where does it fit on the PGA Tour (calendar),” Rolfing said.

The PGA has considered moving the Hawaii events as it realigns with a so-called “wrap-around schedule” that no longer opens in Hawaii.

The situation comes amid proposals for a statewide sports authority in the state and Rolfing said, “Whoever the sports czars are, whatever the group is, somebody needs to look ahead. January 1st (2017) is the Monday of tournament week and that’s too early to get (top) players. Players want a holiday just like everybody else,” Rolfing said. “Some long-term thinking has to be done to what is the right date or it will be more difficult to find a long-term sponsor if the date stays where it is. I think it needs to be adjusted by at least a week.”

“It’s very unfortunate that Hyundai Motor America is dropping its sponsorship of the (T of C) on Maui,” Lt. Gov. Shan Tsutsui said. “I would like to thank Hyundai for the six years of sponsorship it has provided and for its contributions to our economy and especially the community on Maui. This announcement, however, continues to highlight the need for a dedicated entity that is focused on the promotion of sports in Hawaii and committed to negotiating short- and long-term sponsorships for events in the State. The time has come for a new approach to not only maintaining, but growing the sports industry in Hawaii.”

The T of C has added importance as the anchor of the Aloha swing on the PGA Tour, which includes the Sony Open in Hawaii that comes the following week. “They are tied at the hip,” Rolfing said.

Sony’s sponsorship of the Waialae event runs through 2018, the 20th anniversary of the company’s title sponsorship.

The T of C moved to Kapalua in 1999 from La Costa Country Club in Carlsbad, Calif., and was sponsored by Mercedes-Benz until 2010. SBS signed a 10-year agreement with the PGA and Hyundai began a series of one-year sub-agreements with Hyundai in 2011.

But Hyundai sought a bigger stage, officials said. “The PGA Tour’s Los Angeles tournament is the signature golf event in the country’s second-biggest market, is broadcast nationally on CBS and is located in the backyard of Hyundai’s headquarters in Orange County,” Dave Zuchowski, president and CEO of Hyundai Motor America, said in a statement.

Tiger Woods last played in the T of C in 2005 and Phil Mickelson hasn’t played since 2001 but up-and-coming players such as Spieth, Jason Day, Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson have given the event a boost. “I think this was the year that Kapalua turned the corner with a lot of young players, young Americans,” Rolfing said. “Where it was OK to skip the (event) five years ago, the young players look at it differently. You heard Spieth say if he ever skips it he wants the media to call him.”