THE WALES OPEN, played annually at The Celtic Manor Resort, will take on a Japanese feel for the next three years after International Sports Promotion Society (ISPS) signed on as the new title sponsor.
The European PGA Tour event will be renamed the ISPS Handa Wales Open in a deal valued by Frontloaded at around £500,000 per year.
Chaired by Japanese businessman and philanthropist Dr Haruhisa Handa, ISPS aims to contribute to social welfare and international goodwill through sport.
As an integral part of its sponsorship of the Wales Open, the company will be attempting to raise the profile of blind and disabled golf via the promotion of the International Blind Golf Association (IBGA), an organization founded by ISPS in 1998, and attempting to push disabled golf on to the Paralympic agenda.
Despite the Wales Open marking the organization’s most high profile association to golf to date, ISPS has a depth of experience in golf sponsorship with previous activations at various events on the European Senior Tour, the Ladies European Tour and the Australian PGA Tour.
The Wales Open has been searching for a new title sponsor since Swedish car manufacturer Saab, title sponsor of the event in 2011, decided not to take up the option for the 2012 and 2013 tournaments. The deal with Saab is also valued at around £500,000.
The agreement between The Celtic Manor Resort and ISPS was brokered by London-based agency WSM Communications, also responsible for the management of Jumeirah’s sponsorship of US Open champion Rory McIlroy.