Wednesday December 3, 08:52 AM
Golf Asian Tour to escape global slowdown, says chief
By Martin Parry
SINGAPORE (AFP) - The Asian Tour will not be hit by the global economic crisis in the same way as golf in Europe and the United States with regional markets remaining attractive, says executive chairman Kyi Hla Han.
Globally, the sport is heavily reliant on top auto manufacturers and banks for sponsorship, and it is these companies that have felt the impact of the credit crunch more than others.
In the US, for example, General Motors (NYSE: GM - news) and Ford are in dire financial straits, with prize money expected to flatten in the years ahead on both the PGA and LPGA Tours.
The Asian Tour also relies on banks and car makers but Kyi Hla told AFP he was confident they won't be pulling the plug anytime soon.
On the contrary, he said he was finding it difficult to get dates for new tournaments as the Tour expands its schedule next year to an expected 33 events with 42 million dollars in prize money.
This compares to just 22 events with 12 million dollars four years ago when the region's golfers formed a new player representative body -- the Asian Tour -- to ensure control over their careers and development of the sport in Asia.
"I'm having problems getting dates for tournaments," said Kyi Hla.
"So I think we're still giving some value for money in our events, even from the banks," he said, adding that Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) , UBS (Virt-X: UBSN.VX - news) and Maybank had all signed on.
"So even the banks have shown no signs of wanting to back down, not to the promoters and not to me."
Three new tournaments will make their debuts next year, including two in Thailand, while the Asian Tour co-hosts an historic maiden tournament in Europe -- the Omega European Masters in Switzerland.
While sponsors feeling the pinch may be tempted to scale back, or even end, their commitments to golf in the United States or Europe, it appears to be the opposite in Asia.
Kyi Hla believes it is because the region remains an attractive and young market for many companies.
"The way I see it, Omega, for instance, says that Europe... is an established market already so they don't see why they need to push the product more, while Asia is a growing market," he said.
"It's the same for car manufacturers and banks in Europe and the United States, they are established markets. They can cut (promotion) without losing too much exposure because their brand is already fairly solid.
"But in Asia everyone still needs to keep promoting because it is a new, young market and identity is very important. So I don't think they will cut back, even car companies."
Another attraction is because the Asian Tour is booming despite the global downturn, unlike the USPGA which Phil Mickelson recently described as "stagnant".
With events next year in at least 11 countries, including markets such as China, India, Cambodia, and Indonesia, pumping money into events across the region to get exposure remains an attractive proposition.
"I think (companies) see that the Asian Tour is growing and the exposure is good," said Kyi Hla, adding that the nature of the Asia market is also a factor.
"Even with the global financial crisis I think they still feel Asia is a growing, booming market and they can't really cut down because the economic potential is so big and they are hedging on the future.
"They see they are getting a lot out of the Asian Tour."
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