‘It fell into our laps.’ Surprise PGA event will give Bradenton area worldwide exposure
When the World Golf Championships come to the Bradenton area Feb. 25-28, golf fans from 120 countries and 800 million households will be able to tune in to watch 72 of the best professional golfers in the world compete for a $10 million purse.
With that kind of exposure, Elliott Falcione, executive director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, didn’t have to twist any arms Monday to win support for spending $250,000 of tourist development tax fees to sponsor the tourney.
In fact, area mayors led the charge to recommend county commissioners approve the expenditure..
“I have to tell you, I think that this is what we are here for,” Palmetto Mayor Shirley Groover Bryant said in making the sponsorship motion, which was quickly seconded by Bradenton Mayor Gene Brown, and approved unanimously by the Manatee County Tourist Development Council.
The tournament, won last year by Patrick Reed, was originally scheduled for Mexico City. But after the tourney had to be moved because of COVID-19 concerns, “It fell into our laps,” Falcione said.
The World Golf Championships will be held at The Concession Golf Club in East Manatee on a course designed by Jack Nicklaus and Tony Jacklin and will aired by NBC and the Golf Channel. The NBC crews will be shooting footage of the four corners of Manatee County to air during their coverage of the tournament, Falcione said.
The field of players has not yet been set for the tournament, which will be closed to the public because of the pandemic.
After the World Golf Championships at The Concession, the PGA Tour stays in Florida, moving on to the Arnold Palmer Invitational March 4-7 at Bay Hill in Orlando, The Players Championship March 11-14 at The Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, and the Honda Classic March 15-21 at the PGA National Golf Club Championship Course in Palm Beach Gardens.
The tournament is the most significant ever held in Manatee County, said Brian Weimann, general manager of The Concession Golf Club.
“This area has never had anything like it. We had a very short runway to get ready. Normally you would have a year and a half to plan. We had 45 days,” Weimann said.
The Concession takes its name from the 1969 Ryder Cup competition, when Nicklaus conceded the final putt to Jacklin, clinching the first tie in the competition’s history. The gesture, during the biennial competition between mens teams from the United States and Great Britain-Ireland, is considered one of the greatest examples of sportsmanship in history.
The Korn Ferry Tour, which features future PGA Tour players, is holding its 2021 tournament at Lakewood National Golf Club, just a short drive from The Concession, a week before the World Golf Championships.
Visit Sarasota is also expected to chip in $250,000 to help sponsor the World Golf Championships.
For more about The Concession, visit https://theconcession.com/.
This story was originally published February 1, 2021 at 3:31 PM.
