28 October 2013
IHG Named Official Partner of NEC Series-PGA TOUR Latinoamérica
Three-year deal expands existing official marketing relationship with the PGA TOUR
ATLANTA and PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The PGA TOUR and InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) announced today a three-year marketing relationship that, beginning immediately, makes IHG the Official Hotel Partner of NEC Series-PGA TOUR Latinoamérica. The new designation expands upon IHG’s existing agreement with the TOUR that includes the categories of Official Hotel and Official Resort of the PGA TOUR, Champions Tour and Web.com Tour. The latest series begins today in Bogota, Colombia.
“This new partnership with the NEC Series-PGA TOUR Latinoamérica is a perfect complement to IHG’s existing agreement with the TOUR in the U.S., and we are excited to strengthen this relationship by launching this partnership in our Latin America region,” said Gerardo Murray, vice president, Marketing Strategic Services for Mexico, Latin America and Caribbean, IHG. “We are committed to finding new and innovative ways to align our brands with entities that communicate the spirit of our company from a marketing standpoint, and the PGA TOUR is an ideal fit.”
There are 14 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica events in nine countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico and Uruguay) and with the new agreement IHG will have on-site branding at these events. IHG will also receive online presence via the Tour's tri-lingual website, www.pgatourla.com, which is available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
“IHG has been a valued sponsor of the PGA TOUR since 2007 when its Crowne Plaza® brand became title sponsor of the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, a relationship that grew in 2011 when IHG joined our Official Marketing Partner program,” said Jay Monahan, Chief Marketing Officer of the PGA TOUR. “We are extremely pleased to expand our relationship even further through its involvement with NEC Series-PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, and we look forward to working together to help showcase the IHG family of brand to our players and fans in the Latin American region. We thank IHG for its commitment as we continue to expand our brands in the Americas.”
IHG will work with tournaments and players in the NEC Series to provide rooms at exclusive rates at any participating IHG®-branded hotels for its out-of town hotel needs during events. IHG has 200 hotels throughout Latin America, Mexico and the Caribbean, and has been serving Latin America for more than 65 years. IHG brands include: InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo® hotels, Holiday Inn® hotels, Holiday Inn Resort® hotels, Holiday Inn® Club Vacations, Holiday Inn® Express hotels, Staybridge Suites® hotels and Candlewood Suites® hotels. Players will also have the opportunity to participate in IHG’s loyalty program, IHG® Rewards Club the world’s largest with 74 million members worldwide.
About PGA TOUR
The PGA TOUR is the world’s premier membership organization for touring professional golfers, co-sanctioning 120 tournaments on the PGA TOUR, Champions Tour, Web.com Tour, PGA TOUR Latinoamérica and PGA TOUR Canada. The PGA TOUR’s mission is to entertain and inspire its fans, deliver substantial value to its partners, create outlets for volunteers to give back, generate significant charitable and economic impact in the communities in which it plays, and provide financial opportunities for TOUR players. Worldwide, PGA TOUR tournaments are broadcast to nearly 945 million households in 225 countries and territories in 32 languages. Virtually all tournaments are organized as non-profit organizations in order to maximize charitable giving. In 2012, tournaments across all Tours generated more than $130 million for local charitable organizations, bringing the TOUR’s all-time total of charitable contributions to $1.86 billion. The PGA TOUR's web site is PGATOUR.COM, the No. 1 site in golf, and the organization is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL.
About NEC Series-PGA TOUR Latinoamérica
NEC Series – PGA TOUR Latinoamérica is a professional golf tour created in 2012 by the PGA TOUR in collaboration with promoters, clubs and National Golf Federations. The inaugural 2012 season featured 11 tournaments between September and December in seven countries in the Latin American region: Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. The top-five money-winners from the PGA TOUR Latinoamérica order of merit earn Web.com Tour status for the following season. The 2013 season features 14 events in nine countries throughout Latin America. For more information on NEC Series PGA TOUR Latin America, visit www.pgatourla.com.
Media Contacts:
Chris Smith, PGA TOUR, csmith@pgatourhq.com, (904) 273-3379
Cristina Planas, Kreps DeMaria for IHG, [email protected], (305) 663-3543
Notes to Editors:
IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is a global organization with a broad portfolio of nine hotel brands, including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo® Hotels, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express® Hotels, Staybridge Suites® Hotels, Candlewood Suites® Hotels, EVEN™ Hotels and HUALUXE™ Hotels & Resorts.
IHG manages IHG® Rewards Club, the world’s first and largest hotel loyalty program with over 74 million members worldwide. The program was relaunched in July 2013, offering enhanced benefits for members including free internet for Elites across all hotels, globally.
IHG franchises, leases, manages or owns over 4,600 hotels and 678,000 guest rooms in nearly 100 countries and territories. With more than 1,000 hotels in its development pipeline, IHG expects to recruit around 90,000 people into additional roles across its estate over the next few years.
InterContinental Hotels Group PLC is the Group’s holding company and is incorporated in Great Britain and registered in England and Wales.
Visit www.ihg.com for hotel information and reservations and www.ihgrewardsclub.com for more on IHG Rewards Club. For our latest news, visit: www.ihg.com/media, www.twitter.com/ihg, www.facebook.com/ihg or www.youtube.com/ihgplc.