by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
What do The Players Championship and Downtown have in common?
Since the tournament permanently moved to Ponte Vedra in 1976 and subsequently moved to the Stadium Course in 1982, the answer is very little.
That may change this year as tournament organizers, the City, the Jacksonville & the Beaches Convention and Visitors Bureau and Downtown merchants all combine to create what’s being tentatively called the “Move to May Inaugural Golf Experience” since, for the first time, The Players is in May instead of late March.
“I want the Downtown Jacksonville community to embrace the week with activities,” said Brian Goin, executive director of The Players, which is slated for May 7-13 at the Stadium Course.
Goin said there are two components to the experience: finding a way to get the Downtown worker or resident to the tournament efficiently from a central Downtown location and providing reasons for golf fans to head Downtown after play each day. Goin said he’s leaving much of that up to City and CVB officials, but he’s pushing for fireworks at night and free shuttle service to and from the course.
“We are also working with the Jacksonville Suns, who might be in town. The tournament has been in March and they aren’t playing yet,” said Goin. “If they are in town (the Suns host the Birmingham Barons May 7-11), maybe we can tie in a golf theme with baseball.“
CVB President John Reyes said his organization is eager to help promote what he feels has more national following and recognition than most locals may realize.
“We are very excited about the opportunity,” said Reyes, who came to Jacksonville two years ago from the San Diego CVB. “The Players Championship is an event that’s an icon within the entire United States. I’ve been in Jacksonville for two years and living on the West Coast, we knew The Players was golf’s fifth big tournament.
“Jacksonville is situated so that it attracts visitors to the area, but there’s no real brand identity. We want to take The Players and put Jacksonville’s face on it.”
Over the course of the four days of play, approximately 160,000 fans attend The Players. Goin said many of them are both local and repeat fans, meaning the same people attend more than one day. However, many are from out-of-town and many of them stay in the Downtown area. Goin said those fans often feel removed from Downtown during play and removed from the tournament after play. The answer, he believes, lies somewhere between the current atmosphere and the one created by the Super Bowl in 2005.
“I live in Ponte Vedra and I’ve talked to many others who live on the outskirts of Jacksonville and they have told me their best Downtown experience ever was Downtown during the Super Bowl,” said Goin. “I’m not saying we have to get to that. But, we are spending a lot of money to get that to happen.”
The Players is doing its part to promote this year’s tournament and remind golf fans of the move. Outside of renovating the golf course and building a brand new clubhouse, plenty is being spent on advertising. The Players ads are regulars on the Golf Channel and those who watched last week’s Accenture Match Play Championship on the Golf Channel and NBC saw several Players ads during the weekend matches.
In addition to making Downtown a part of the week-long event, Goin said he’s looking to increase attendance this year. Between paying customers and complimentary tickets and passes given to the media and players, The Players average about 40,000 a day. Goin said PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem would like to see that reach 50,000 within the next couple of years.
“That’s a huge increase. If we get half of that this year, that will be a good step,” said Goin, adding the course can easily handle a bigger crowd, but making sure fans take advantage of free, off-site parking is key to getting attendance to 50,000 a day.
A meeting is planned for March 20 and Reyes has formed a “Host Committee” comprised of representatives from the CVB, The Players, the Tourist Development Council, the City and the Jacksonville Hotel and Motel Association. That committee would be responsible for the oversight and budget of the event.
Reyes said he’s looking to stage events on the Northbank from the Hyatt to the Times-Union building with ideally 18 different “holes” that would be an assortment of activities, vendors and concessionaires.
“This is an opportunity for Downtown to be the central location for the tournament,” he said, adding he’s aware the committee has a short time-line. “I think we have the experience to do that. Sometimes I think by having a limit on time, you’ll be very focused.”
Reyes said the plan is to follow the template the NFL established years ago when the league began to stage events within its major events. He also understands that no matter what happens this year, it’s more than in the past.
“We understand this is year one. We are hoping over the next couple of years to create some momentum,” said Reyes. “We are already looking at next year.”