Masters Leaves $78 Million on the Greens with No Title Sponsor
In the golf world, April is synonymous with the Masters. The majority of pros would say the “Green Jacket” is the most coveted prize in all of golf. On the other hand, PGA Tour sponsors are looking at a different kind of green. The Masters could be mere perfection for a presenting sponsor, only the Masters opts not to have one. Front Row Analytics, an industry leader in sponsorship and media evaluation, estimated that a presenting sponsor for this year’s edition of the prestigious tournament would gain a whopping $78,398,286 in media value.
Front Row Analytics is the evaluation division of Front Row Marketing Services, an industry leader in commercial rights sales and a subsidiary of the Philadelphia-based sport and entertainment firm, Comcast-Spectacor.
This year’s Masters is certainly one of the most highly anticipated of all-time based on the fact that Tiger Woods is returning to professional golf for the first time in nearly five months. The media surrounding this event is already at an all-time high. There are so many unanswered questions about how he will perform with all the public scrutiny and negative publicity he has faced since his leave from golf.
“The amount of media exposure that will be generated from this year’s Masters will be astonishing. This will be one tournament that is likely to attract even non-golf fans. The media value that could be gained through broadcast exposure, news coverage, international television, national promotions and on-site exposure will be extraordinary, possibly the highest in the history of golf,” said Eric Smallwood, vice president of project management for Front Row Marketing Services.
Within the $78,398,286 in worldwide media value projected for a presenting sponsor, nearly 70 percent, or $54,860,309 of that would be gained from broadcast exposure including on-screen bugs, tee box signage, on-site signage, etc. This number is the grand total of all four rounds combined, with the final round bringing in the greatest amount of media value.
International television would be the second most profitable venture, with the potential to bring in $13,323,824 in media exposure. Domestic and International news coverage throughout the tournament would generate $5,663,210, which includes print media, Internet and television news coverage.
There are numerous examples of national promotions surrounding the Masters. ESPN is carrying the first two rounds, thus the ESPN family of networks has steadily promoted the tournament, which would ultimately add value to a potential title sponsor, whose name would appear in all of those promotions. In addition, CBS airs the third and final rounds, which would give incentive for them to promote the tournament as well, adding even more value. In the end, an anticipated value would come out to be $3,438,097.
On-site exposure also plays a significant role in the overall media value for a presenting sponsor, taking in an expected $1,112,845 in value composed of a combination of on-site exposure and local advertising, which includes print, television and radio.
For more information on Front Row Marketing Services, visit www.frontrow-marketing.com.
About Comcast-Spectator
Comcast-Spectacor is the Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment company which owns the Philadelphia Flyers (NHL), the Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), two Philadelphia arenas, the Wachovia Center and Wachovia Spectrum, four Flyers Skate Zone community ice skating and hockey rinks and Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. In addition, Comcast-Spectacor is also the principal owner of Global Spectrum, the fastest growing firm in the public assembly management field with more than 85 facilities throughout the United States and Canada; Ovations Food Services, a food and beverage service provider; New Era Tickets, a ticketing and marketing company for public assembly facilities; Front Row Marketing Services, a commercial rights sales company; and 3601 Creative Group, a full-service in-house advertising agency. In a partnership with Disson Skating, Comcast-Spectacor annually produces 10 nationally televised figure skating spectaculars on NBC.
For more information on Comcast-Spectacor, visit www.comcast-spectacor.com