LEXINGTON – The Barbasol Championship will include three of Central Kentucky’s signature companies as exclusive sponsors when the PGA TOUR comes to the Bluegrass on July 16-22, 2018. UK HealthCare has been designated as the Official Health Care Provider, Lexmark is the Official Printing & Imaging Solutions Provider, and Lexus of Lexington will serve as the Official Luxury Vehicle for the tournament.

“When we announced the PGA TOUR would be coming to Central Kentucky, UK HealthCare, Lexmark and Lexus of Lexington were all quick to get involved,” said Bluegrass Sports Commission CEO/President Brian Miller. “Collectively, they understood the positive impact this will have on our community and to that end, they wanted to be involved. UK HealthCare, Lexmark and Lexus of Lexington are three anchor partners of this event which has already seen more than 30 businesses across this state commit to this event.”

As the Official Health Care Provider, UK HealthCare will provide first-aid services and sports medicine support at the tournament, but the overall sponsorship is much greater. Through the partnership, the Barbasol Championship will engage and feature the hospitals and clinics, UK Athletics and the University of Kentucky as a whole. A key component is the designation of the Kentucky Children’s Hospital as a featured charity of the tournament and the beneficiary of the “Barbasol Championship Acoustic Jam,” a concert at the Lexington Opera House on Tuesday night of tournament week featuring six country acts, including headliners Billy Currington and Maddie and Tae.

UK HealthCare includes UK Albert B. Chandler Hospital, Kentucky Children’s Hospital and UK Good Samaritan Hospital as well as all and more than 80 specialized clinics, 140+ outreach programs, and a team of 9,000 physicians, nurses, pharmacists and other health care workers – all dedicated to patient health.

“On behalf of UK HealthCare, we look forward to sponsoring and providing services during this exciting event coming to Lexington this summer,” said Dr. Mark F. Newman, UK executive vice president for health affairs. ”In addition, we are honored to have Kentucky Children’s Hospital as the benefactor and a featured charity of the tournament enabling us to highlight and recognize the extraordinary advanced specialty patient care provided at the region’s only hospital just for children.”

In addition to its role as an active corporate citizen here in the marketplace, Lexmark also has deep ties to professional golf. The company is the Official Imaging and Printing Solutions Provider of the PGA of America, which oversees the Senior, Women’s and PGA Championships, and has provided services for the U.S.-based Ryder Cup events and the PGA Tour’s Genesis Open.

“Lexmark and the PGA of America have been working together for a decade, since Lexmark first supported the 2008 Ryder Cup with printing technology and solutions,” said Brock Saladin, Lexmark senior vice president and chief revenue officer. “We are pleased to continue that partnership here in the Bluegrass with our sponsorship of the Barbasol Championship.

For the Barbasol Championship, Lexmark will have the same designation as the Official Imaging and Printing Solutions Provider and will provide printing technology from its Lexington headquarters and serve as the official sponsor of the tournament’s media center. The company, founded in Lexington in 1991, is a global imaging solutions leader serving customers worldwide.

Lexus also has deep ties with golf and the designation as the Official Luxury Vehicle of the Barbasol Championship is a natural fit for the brand here in the Bluegrass. The Lexus ES 350 line is now produced at Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky (TMMK) in Georgetown and added 750 new jobs to the local economy and a $360 million investment in the plant when the line was added in 2015.

“Naming Lexus as the Official Luxury Vehicle for the inaugural host year of the Barbasol PGA was a no-brainer for our brand, especially within the state of Kentucky.  We are truly blessed to have TMMK in our backyard, and the privilege of showcasing some of the vehicles manufactured in Kentucky on this national platform is simply an opportunity we could not pass up,” said, Kelley Nalli, Chief Marketing Officer, MAP Group Companies, owner of Lexus of Lexington.

Lexus of Lexington also will serve as the Presenting Sponsor of the tournament’s “Birdies for the Bluegrass” program, which will drive charitable giving throughout the Commonwealth through pledges for each birdie scored in this year’s tournament. The Woodhill Community Center, a primary beneficiary of Lexus of Lexington’s ownership group’s foundation, The MAP Foundation, also will serve as featured charity with the Barbasol Championship.

“To ensure that this event becomes the economic driver we know it can be while also impacting charities across the Bluegrass, we must have our businesses here in Kentucky get involved,” said Brooks Downing, Executive Director of the Barbasol Championship. “UK HealthCare, Lexmark and Lexus of Lexington are three of our most active corporate and community leaders in Central Kentucky and we are thrilled to forge a cornerstone partnership with each of them as they help us set forth a sustainable foundation for this event for many years to come.”

The Barbasol Championship will tee off this July at Champions at Keene Trace in Nicholasville. The tournament, which will be played opposite the British Open, featured such stars at Jim Furyk, Davis Love and Angel Cabrera, Davis Love III and Hunter Mahan (all are eligible to appear) competing for $3.5 million in prize money and 300 FedExCup points.

SPECIAL TO BARBASOLCHAMPIONSHIPKY.COM | BY MIKE FIELDS

After Brooks Downing founded bd Global in late summer 2012, the company’s three-man staff operated out of the basement of his house for almost three years.

“Our global headquarters,” he said with a laugh.

Downing didn’t have a desk. He shared a small table with Jon Albaugh, while Glenn Pfister worked from a couch.

Downing joked that Daisy, his golden retriever, was their secretary.

“No overhead,” Downing said. “We were lean and mean.”

That first winter bd Global’s business amounted to putting on about two dozen college basketball games, handling everything from securing teams and arenas to selling sponsorships and tickets.

“We were like, ‘Whoa! We’re killing it!’” Downing recalled.

Pfister, the company’s Director of Basketball, wondered how they could ever manage to do more.

Flash ahead to today and bd Global has not only expanded its involvement in college basketball six-fold (it coordinates more than 120 games in November and December), the company also puts on two early season Web.com golf tournaments in the Bahamas and even manages a college hockey tournament in Las Vegas.

And and now, partnered with the Bluegrass Sports Commission, bd Global is getting ready to stage a PGA TOUR event. The $3.2 million Barbasol Championship will be played July 16-22 at Champions at Keene Trace in Jessamine County.

Perhaps it was kismet that bd Global relocated its offices from Downing’s basement to the second floor of the clubhouse at Champions at Keene Trace three years ago.

At the time, Downing imagined someday bringing a professional golf tournament here, but nothing the size and scope of the Barbasol Championship.

“We were really after a Champions Tour (50-and-over golfers) event,” he said. “Now, to be working on a PGA TOUR event, I don’t know how we could be operating any other way than being right here.

“It’s almost like it was destiny.”

Destiny and a lot of networking.

Downing’s background includes a stint as the sports information director at the University of Kentucky, and sports marketing positions with three different firms. So when he launched bd Global, he had a ready-made list of connections in the sports world.

It was a personal connection, however, that was the genesis of the Barbasol Championship coming to Central Kentucky.

After Evan Mossbarger and B Frye purchased Champions (and neighboring Keene Run) in 2014, Mossbarger called his friend Downing and asked if he would serve as the club’s ambassador and help market the combined 36-hole country club.

One idea was to bring back the Bank One Classic, a Senior Tour event that Lexington hosted from 1983 to 1997.

Over the next two years, bd Global, along with the Bluegrass Sports Commission, tried but failed to raise the necessary $2 million to get a Champions (Senior) Tour tournament. “We got close twice, but never could quite get the commitment from sponsors to push it across the finish line,” Downing said.

Then came the phone call, in January 2017, that changed everything.

The Barbasol Championship wasn’t doing well in Opelika, Ala., and the PGA TOUR was looking for a more receptive venue. The PGA TOUR was familiar with Downing and his company because of their Web.com tournaments in the Bahamas.

“They were needing a market where the Barbasol Championship would be successful, so BAM!, we were their first call,” Downing said.

He was told the budget for a PGA TOUR event like the Barbasol Championship would be about the same as for a Champions Tour event.

“We said yes, and by the time I hung up the phone I was ready to do a backflip,” Downing said. “I was hoping when we went to the streets to try to sell it, it would resonate a little more. To say it did would be an understatement. The reception has just been incredible.”

While bd Global has taken on big projects before, none can compare to the enormity of the Barbasol Championship.

That’s why the first person bd Global contacted was Vince Gabbert, who as vice president of Keeneland coordinated the 2015 Breeders’ Cup at the historic race course.

“We didn’t want to reinvent the wheel,” Downing said. “Since Vince and his team had put on a huge event just a few years ago, they were the biggest resource we had.”

Albaugh said Gabbert “teed us up with everything, from tenting to parking to security. Probably 50% of the logistics with our event has some crossover to what they used for the Breeders’ Cup.”

Downing also credited Brian Miller, president and CEO of the Bluegrass Sports Commission, for getting a jump on seeking out sponsors.

“That’s the beauty of our partnership and having them as our sales team in this marketplace,” Downing said. “We will look back at that being a key piece to this event being successful.”

It’s hard to fathom all that goes into hosting a PGA TOUR event, as Downing and his staff will attest.

The golf course itself has undergone some changes. Not a full-fledged facelift, but rather a few tucks here and there that were made more difficult because of the long winter.

Also come tournament time, there will be more than two dozen corporate tents dotting a few fairways and semi-circling the 18^th green.

The Golf Channel will bring in a small army of people and a fleet of semi-trailers packed with equipment needed to televise four rounds of competition to a world-wide audience.

Vanessa Taylor, the volunteer coordinator, probably has the most challenging task. She’s looking for about 1,200 volunteers to staff the week-long event in a myriad of jobs, everything from transportation to scoring to working the driving range to hospitality to helping out at the daycare center for the players’ children.

Josh Franklin, who along with Albaugh and Catherine Clifton is a Senior Director for the tournament, is in charge of ticketing and operations.

Fans will be shuttled in from Keeneland to a bus depot being built on the grounds. (There will be no spectator parking at the course.)

The 132 players in the tournament will drive courtesy cars, provided by Lexus of Lexington, to and from Champions at Keene Trace. They’ll also be provided help finding lodging, whether it’s hotels or private housing.

There are dozens of other items, big and small, on the checklist that will keep bd Global’s staff busy for the next seven weeks.

Downing is confident the product they’re selling will be a hit with the fans. The Barbasol Championship will feature some of the best golfers on the planet, even though the British Open will be contested the same week.

Downing hopes this PGA TOUR event, which has a four-year commitment here, will evolve into a can’t-miss sports and social happening.

“If we get this right, this will become a I-gotta-be-there event,” Downing said. “What I love is that it shapes up to be a great party scene for Central Kentucky.”

Downing envisions fans sticking around after the last putt drops every day to enjoy the long summer evenings at a beautiful setting, eating, drinking and socializing.

“It’s going to be a scene people will want to be part of because it’s something special,” Downing said. “And we do think we’re creating something special.”

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Giving back to local communities is a key tenet of the PGA TOUR, and it will be a primary mission for the Barbasol Championship as it moves to Champions at Keene Trace in Central Kentucky this summer. Organizers are launching the “Birdies for the Bluegrass, presented by Lexus of Lexington” campaign to drive charitable giving as the tournament impacts non-profit organizations throughout the state of Kentucky.

“Bringing the PGA TOUR to the Bluegrass achieves two primary goals: an estimated $20 million economic impact to Kentucky and an opportunity to impact lives of those who need it most in our communities through our local charities,” said Brooks Downing, Executive Director of the Barbasol Championship. “We are modeling our charitable platform after what others have done on the PGA TOUR and feel confident that as this event grows, it will be one of, if not the biggest, charitable platform in the state.”

Birdies for the Bluegrass is a pledge program where individuals can make a monetary pledge for each birdie tallied during tournament play. The TOUR estimates that somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000 birdies are typically tallied during the four-day event. Donors can designate to which charity their pledge can impact with the Barbasol Championship then providing an additional percentage of matching funds. As donors make their pledge, they can guess the exact number of birdies that will be totaled during the event. Those who guess correctly will have a chance to win a two-year lease on a new Lexus.

Blue Grass Community Foundation (BGCF), based in Lexington, will manage the program for the tournament.

“We are pleased to be the philanthropic partner for the 2018 Barbasol Championship,” said Scott Fitzpatrick, Vice President for Advancement at BGCF.  “At the Community Foundation, our mission is to build generous, vibrant and engaged communities, and encourage everyone to participate in charitable giving.  Birdies for the Bluegrass will provide a fun and impactful way for individuals throughout our Commonwealth to support causes that are meaningful to them.”

Non-profit organizations in the state can now register for the program at www.birdiesforthebluegrass.com and pledges will be accepted beginning in June and run through the conclusion of the second round of the tournament.

The Barbasol Championship is one of only 49 PGA TOUR events, and last year, charitable donations from the PGA TOUR totaled more than $185 million, more than the other four professional sports combined. The tournament, which will be played opposite the British Open, may include names such as Jim Furyk, Davis Love III and Hunter Mahan (all are eligible to appear) competing for $3.5 million in prize money and 300 FedExCup points.