The PGA Tour announced Wednesday it has signed a multi-year agreement with AT&T to continue as title sponsor of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
The length of the agreement was not announced, but AT&T has sponsored the event since 1986, continuing its streak as the longest-running PGA Tour title sponsor. Rory McIlroy won the 40th edition of the event this year on the famed links.
“We are honored to extend with our longest-running title sponsor in AT&T, a committed supporter of Monterey Peninsula Foundation and Pebble Beach Company for four decades,” PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said in a release. “A legacy event on our PGA Tour schedule, the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am holds a special place in the hearts of golf fans everywhere, and we are delighted to see this historic championship retain its association with AT&T.”
Next year will be the 80th playing of the event on the Monterey Peninsula, with the first round set for Thursday, Feb. 12.
“I was going to play it every year anyway, so it’s kind of nice they’re going to renew for one of these elevated events,” Jordan Speith, an AT&T ambassador, said Wednesday at the Travelers Championship. “We saw what’s possible on the tough end two years ago with obviously a crazy storm that knocks out the final round, and then we saw kind of this last year how amazing this model can look on one of the greatest golf courses in the world with one of the greatest champions that we’ve had in Rory winning there.
“All in all, I think it’s amazing. Having been on kind of single-year partnerships with the Tour the last couple years, to make a commitment there is really big for us players, for the PGA Tour, and hopefully AT&T reaps the benefits that they’re hoping for as well.”
AT&T is the latest title sponsor signing a long-term agreement with the Tour, joining Valspar, 3M and John Deere, all of which signed agreements through 2030.
The Pebble Beach Pro-Am is a signature event, thus requiring a bigger commitment from sponsors. Sports Business Journal’s Josh Carpenter reports signature event sponsorships have been going for as much as $25 million annually.
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