Singapore: The LPGA has extended its long-term relationship with IMG. As such, the world’s largest independent distributor of sports programming will exclusively distribute the Tour’s international television broadcasts through 2019.
The partnership between the LPGA Tour and IMG began with distribution of tournaments to six countries in 1996.
Today, every event on the LPGA schedule is seen in upto 175 countries. In the majority of cases, the distribution is live.
The initial surge of broadcast interest started in Asia, a market that continues to grow for the LPGA.
However, more re­cently the Tour has seen very significant growth in the rest of the world, with major arrangements in countries and regions including Australia, France, Iceland, the Middle East, New Zealand, Russia, Scandinavia, South Africa, Spain and the United Kingdom.
Peter Smith, Senior Vice President, Director of International Sales, IMG Media, said: “The LPGA is truly the only global golf Tour. Both the continuing growth of the schedule, domestically and internationally, and the remarkable skills and person­alities of such a widely geographic group of talented players are the real reasons for this tremendous growth and global visibility of the LPGA Tour.
“As a result, we have seen our relationship with the LPGA develop to be far more of a partnership than a simple client/agent representation.”
Michael Whan, the LPGA Tour Commissioner, added: “Our Tour is now driven by its international influence. IMG has been a terrif­ic partner and continues to invest in showcasing our engaging stars on a global platform. We look forward to collaborating with them on enhancing the viewer experience of the LPGA.”
IMG is an Executive Member of the Asian Golf Industry Federation.