ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the development, impact, and growth of golf sponsorship. Highlighting the creation of the first professional golf tournament in 1937, the chapter discusses the astonishing leap that professional golf has taken from that era to today, particularly in the context of the sponsorship income that successful golfers can accrue. It reviews the more common objectives that potential corporate sponsors may wish to achieve through golf sponsorship, and indicates that, after the sponsorship agreement is signed, in order to achieve those objectives, further expenditure is necessary. The chapter also examines the need for golf to utilize alternative platforms to attract a younger generation to help stem the reported decline in participation in mature markets around the world. A brief review of the sponsorship of golf by government is also included, suggesting that the economic benefits of golf sponsorship extend beyond corporate entities.
