KAPALUA, Maui, Hawaii, Jan. 2, 2014 – The Hyundai Tournament of Champions, the PGA TOUR’s exclusive-field event, starts today at The Plantation Course, Kapalua Resort in Maui, Hawaii featuring 30 champions from the 2013 calendar year. The field includes some of the world’s top players, like Masters champion Adam Scott and PGA Championship winner Jason Dufner. They will be joined by a list of the game’s elite including Brandt Snedeker, Matt Kuchar, Jordan Spieth, Webb Simpson, Zach Johnson and defending champion Dustin Johnson, among others.
The Hyundai Tournament of Champions is a key component in Hyundai’s global sports marketing strategy that matches the world’s passion for sports with the company’s own competitive drive. This includes advertising during the NFL’s Super Bowl, a global sponsorship of the FIFA World Cup™ and an expansive college football marketing program.
“In our fourth year as title sponsor of the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, this event continues to offer a great venue to connect golf fans with Hyundai and our premium vehicles, Equus and Genesis,” said Steve Shannon, vice president, Marketing, Hyundai Motor America. “This year, we look forward to even a bigger charitable commitment with numerous Maui and Hawaii organizations benefiting from the tournament proceeds. Hyundai’s nonprofit organization Hope on Wheels will again be hosting a 5K Run/Walk on Maui, which will be sure to draw even more participants in its second year.”
To build excitement for the tournament online this year, fans could vote through the PGA TOUR’s Social Hub to determine the featured pairing for the first round. Through the Hyundai You Pair the Pros program fans selected Adam Scott to be paired with defending champion Dustin Johnson. This unique social media engagement was a first on the PGA TOUR.
During the tournament week, the PGA TOUR players will drive Hyundai’s flagship Equus sedan, Genesis sedan or Santa Fe around Maui. These Hyundai vehicles, as well as Santa Fe Sport, Azera, Sonata Hybrid and Genesis Coupe will be featured throughout the Plantation course and Kapalua resort, demonstrating Hyundai’s dynamic vehicle lineup. The winner of Hyundai Tournament of Champions will also receive an Equus premium luxury sedan to drive complimentary for an entire year.
Additionally, Hyundai will showcase the all-new 2015 Tucson Fuel Cell vehicle. The Tucson Fuel Cell vehicle is the first mass-produced, federally certified hydrogen fuel cell vehicle that retail consumers can put in their driveway. Starting in the spring of 2014, a limited number of the Tucson Fuel Cell vehicles will be available for lease in Southern California for $499 per month for 36 months along with unlimited free hydrogen refueling and At Your Service Valet Maintenance at no extra cost.
The Hyundai Tournament of Champions has a deep commitment to Hawaii and Maui communities and this year numerous local charities will benefit from donations by Hyundai and the tournament organizers. Since the tournament’s inception in 1999 the tournament and host organizations have generated more than $4.4 million to Hawaii Community Charities and that number will only grow in 2014.
For the second year in a row, Hyundai’s non-profit organization Hope On Wheels will host a 5K Run/Walk that will take place on Saturday, January 4 at 8:00 a.m. at Whalers Village in Lahaina. This will kick-off the Hope On Wheels 2014 5K Run/Walk series that will continue in different cities throughout the year. As part of this 5K event, Hope On Wheels will also award a $75,000 Hyundai Scholar Grant to Kapi‘olani Medical Center for pediatric cancer programs that will be added to the $286,000 donated since Hyundai became the title sponsor.
The tournament begins with the Pro-Am on Thursday, January 2, continuing with four rounds of professional competition Friday, January 3 through Monday, January 6. The Golf Channel will broadcast all four days of the tournament with NBC covering an hour live on Sunday from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. Eastern.
Follow the tournament on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HyundaiTOC and on Twitter @HyundaiTOC to get updates and a behind-the-scenes look at the tournament.
PGA TOUR
The PGA TOUR is the world’s premier membership organization for touring professional golfers, co-sanctioning more than 130 tournaments on the PGA TOUR, Champions Tour, Web.com Tour, NEC Series-PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR China.
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.