Global logistics company FedEx has been named as the new title sponsor of the World Golf Championships event that is currently held in Akron, Ohio, with the tournament to now take place in Memphis, Tennessee as part of an agreement with the PGA Tour.
The tournament will be known as the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational from the 2018-19 season and will take place at the TPC Southwind (pictured) course in Memphis.
FedEx will assume title sponsorship of the event from Japanese tyre manufacturer Bridgestone, which took on the role in 2006. The 2018 edition of the tournament, which is one of the four WGC events in golf, will take place from August 2-5. It will be the last time the tournament is played under its current guise of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational before its renaming and relocation next year.
The event is contested by between 45 and 50 of the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking system. FedEx will share title sponsorship rights with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
The FedEx St Jude Classic at TPC Southwind is already a regular event on the PGA Tour and will take place as normal this year, before the newly-named WGC debuts in 2019. PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said talks over moving a WGC event to Memphis began in the fourth quarter of 2017 once it became clear that a new sponsor couldn’t be found for the Akron-based WGC Bridgestone Invitational.
Monahan said: “We look forward to working with FedEx and continuing to grow a tournament that it has supported for 30 years and carries one of the most impactful charitable stories on the PGA Tour.
“The PGA Tour has had a front row seat to witnessing the impact the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital has made on countless lives. We are proud to align one of our truly elite tournaments with two brands that are both globally recognised and an integral part of the Memphis community.”
The agreement expands upon FedEx’s commitment to golf, with the company also sponsoring the PGA Tour’s annual points race, the FedEx Cup.