CHARLOTTE, N.C. Wachovia Corp., which has recently revved up its marketing and branding in the wake of the Sept. 1 merger of First Union and the old Wachovia, will sponsor a major golf tournament here a year from now.
Wachovia and the PGA Tour announced Monday that the company had signed a four-year commitment to sponsor the Wachovia Championship each May at Charlottes Quail Hollow Club. The first tournament is scheduled for May 5-11 of next year, the same week that Wachovia plans to consolidate, convert, and rebrand its North and South Carolina branches, said David M. Carroll, Wachovias co-head of merger integration.
Executives with $320 billion-asset Wachovia and the PGA hope the purse of $5.6 million, with a top prize of $1 million, will help draw the sports top players.
PGA spokesman Chris Smith said that only one tournament on this years PGA schedule has a purse of more than $5.6 million the $6 million Players Championship, which was held in March in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., where the PGA organization is based. And the Wachovia events top prize is among the tours largest ever, Mr. Smith said.
The Wachovia Championship is to be broadcast on national television and is expected to get worldwide media coverage.
Dan Fleishman, Wachovias senior vice president and director of sponsorships and alliances, said, This will bolster our image across the country, both regionally and nationally.
Wachovia would not say what it is paying for the sponsorship.
A spokesman said the company has renewed its commitment to the First Union Betsy King Classic, to be held Aug. 22-25 in Kutztown, Pa., this year, through 2004 (branches in Pennsylvania and New Jersey will continue to use the First Union name until at least mid-2003).
