SRIXON
SPORTS TO SPONSOR AJGA QUALIFIER SERIES
Three-year
agreement begins with qualifiers to be held on Easter weekend
Srixon
Sports and the American Junior Golf Association will partner
in 2005 to conduct 44 Srixon Qualifiers in 25 states to accompany
the 44 Open events on the AJGA schedule, the AJGA announced
Wednesday.
The three-year deal will provide playing opportunities to
more than 4,000 junior golfers, ages 12-18, throughout the
AJGA season. The agreement marks the first partnership between
the AJGA and Atlanta-based Srixon in the 27-year existence
of the Association.
The Srixon Qualifier Series is part of a continuing effort
being made to provide AJGA members with additional opportunities
to compete at the national level.
"The AJGA has been the cornerstone for developing golf
at a high level,” said Mike Pai, vice president of marketing
for Srixon Sports. “We are excited to expose our brand
to the world's best junior golfers and have them consider
Srixon."
Srixon Qualifiers are 18-hole events that will take place
prior to every Open tournament. Approximately 100 junior golfers
who comprise each qualifier field will compete to round out
remaining spots in the Open tournaments. Fifty percent of
the approximately 100-player fields will be restricted to
2006 high school graduates in order to provide them with playing
opportunites to gain optimal exposure to colleges and universities
prior to graduation.
As part of the deal, each junior golfer competing in a Srixon
Qualifier will receive a dozen golf balls courtesy of Srixon.
“We are excited to have a world-respected company such
as Srixon as a sponsor of our Qualifier Series,” said
Jason Etzen, AJGA executive vice president of development.
“Srixon’s support will allow more juniors opportunities
to gain national exposure for college golf scholarships.”
SRIXON Sports USA, Inc., based in Norcross, Ga., has been
distributing premium golf balls and equipment in the U.S.
since 1997 and is a subsidiary of SRI Sports. SRI Sports is
one of the world's leading patent holders in golf ball technology
and manufactures several golf balls played in the United States.
SRI Sports-made balls have won 73 PGA TOUR events since 1989,
including seven majors. For more information about SRIXON,
please visit www.srixon.com.
For more information about the Srixon Qualifier Series, contact Player Services at (877) 373-2542. For
more information on Srixon's sponsorship agreement with the AJGA contact Tonya Oskarson, AJGA Communications,
at (770) 868-4200, ext. 784.