The Scottish Open will have a new sponsor in 2022 in South Korean car company Genesis and is now part of the multi-million FedEx Cup as the PGA and European Tours tighten their partnership.
The Genesis Scottish Open (July 4-10) will be officially co-sanctioned between the two partners, have a field split with 73 members from both the PGA Tour and European Tour.
In return, the two events on the PGA Tour held during the weeks of the Open Championship and the Scottish Open, The Barbasol Championship and The Barracuda Championship, will be opened to 50 European Tour members.
All three events will qualify for the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup points race and the European Tour’s Race to Dubai.
Genesis, the luxury automotive brand from South Korea, will now title sponsor two tournaments on the PGA Tour, with the Genesis Scottish Open joining Tiger Wood’s Genesis Invitational tournament held at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles in February.
Scottish confirmed for pre-Open slot until 2025
The Scottish Open will hold its place in the global golf schedule prior to the Open Championship until at least 2025. A continuation of the deal with The Scottish Government, managed by VisitScotland, is also confirmed through to 2025.
“We are delighted to welcome Genesis as a title sponsor of a European Tour event for the first time,” said European Tour Chief Executive Keith Pelley.
“Genesis has a strong history of sponsorship on the PGA Tour through The Genesis Invitational. Their commitment to the Scottish Open will further enhance one of our premier events of the season.”
The Scottish will appear on the PGA Tour’s official schedule for the first time. It has been a mainstay of the European Tour since 1986.
This year’s event had the largest PGA Tour player presence ever, clearly suggesting what was afoot.
‘A significant step for the global game’
The Scottish Open as the first co-sanctioned event “just made a ton of sense” said PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan.
“There is the prestige of the event, the importance of the Scottish Open in the global schedule,” he said. “We’re very proud to be involved in a great championship.
“The fact that it precedes the Open Championship. I point to the comments of Collin Morikawa made following his victory at the Open; the importance of playing that event, being in market, starting to familiarise yourself with the conditions.
“Over 20 PGA Tour players (play the Scottish) traditionally each year. It presented to us an immediate way to demonstrate the impact we could have.”
There is no confirmation yet that The Renaissance Club in East Lothian will stay as host, but Pelley indicated clearly that was certainly the partnership’s hope.
“There is no doubt that The Renaissance and the Sivardi brothers have really done a terrific job. Not only changing the golf course but improving the amenities,” he said.
“Jay and I have a conversation with our new title partner in Genesis later on this month in New York. We look forward to sharing with them that this is a venue that is more than worthy of the Genesis Scottish Open.
“They are fantastic location and a good spot for us.”
It is also confirmed that as part of the collaboration, the Irish Open will see an increase in prize money next year to $6 million – nearly double the prizefund in 2021.
‘This is most definitely just the beginning’
Pelley added the news confirmed the promise that the strategic alliance of the tours would benefit members of both.
“There are further enhancements to the Genesis Scottish Open, a strengthening of the Irish Open for our members, and direct access for European Tour members to two PGA Tour events,” he said.
“There has been considerable collaboration behind the scenes between our two Tours since last November. We are delighted to share these initial developments. They demonstrate our commitment to working together for our sport globally.
“We will have more to announce in the coming months – this is most definitely just the beginning.”
Scots’ places will be protected
The detail of the co-sanctioning means that players who are members of both tours – such as Rory McIlroy or Jon Rahm – will count as PGA Tour members in the 50-50 split of the field at the Scottish.
Pelley also gave a commitment that places for Scots within the field would be protected by way of invitations.
Monahan added the both tours were now “stronger than at any time in our history”.
“We are positioned to grow over the next 10 years faster than at any point in our existence,” he said.
“We are committed to continuing to evolve and adapt. Our partnership with the European Tour will take the global game to new heights.”