Valspar Championship Growing Attendance by Adding to Fan Experience

In an attempt to revitalize excitement in the game, the PGA TOUR has done a lot recently to try and draw in new fans.  This is especially on display this week at the Valspar Championship at Copperhead Course in Innisbrook.

Ever since Valspar started sponsoring this tournament four years ago, they have made changes that have allowed for an increase in ticket sales every single year.  That has been capped by the 105,000 fans who attended the tournament last year and the expected 20,000 fans who will descend on the course during its busiest day.

This year, Valspar has provided fans with a more engaging experience, with many unique events taking place on the course grounds.  For example, there will be a food truck rally this year featuring celebrity chef Ming Tsai, a 50-ton sand sculpture, and a concert by country star Toby Keith.

While this isn’t the typical entertainment that you would expect at a golf event, this type of action is exactly what PGA TOUR event-goers want according to Tracy West, the tournament director.  The motivation for these events stems from the desire of the people.  “Ever since the Tiger Woods era began, tournaments are more of a happening and we’re getting a much broader fan base instead of just real avid golfers,” West said.

Another motivation for adding these events to the fan experience is to limit heckling.  Many golfers in recent weeks, especially European golfers, have complained about the excessive heckling that they have had to deal with on the course so giving fans something else to do other than constantly criticizing players is always a plus.

There seems to be a lot of interest in some of the events that are taking place this week at the Valspar Championship and it will be interesting to see if other events follow their lead.

Cover Image via Instagram