Michigan economy set for $41 million boost from PGA Championship, according to RBS
DETROIT (July 30, 2008) - The Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS), one of the world’s leading financial services groups, today announced that the upcoming 90th PGA Championship will yield approximately $41 million in business to Michigan. The PGA Championship will be held at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Township, August 7 to 10, 2008. RBS is the corporate parent of Charter One Bank in Michigan.
In 2007, RBS became the first PGA of America Official Patron – the highest level of partnership and designation ever granted by the world’s largest working sports organization. RBS has analyzed the economic impact of the 90th PGA Championship which draws on existing evidence and data including the numbers of spectators attending, where they’re traveling from, and how much they spend when they visit the region.
The PGA Championship brings significant benefits to the community that hosts the golf season’s final major. RBS estimates that the local economy will benefit from net additional spending of approximately $41 million as a result of the Championship, including:
• $20 million in ticket sales and hospitality;
• $4 million paid to hotels;
• $7 million in direct spending by people attending the Championship with local businesses; and
• $10 million in “indirect” purchases – local businesses that benefit from visitors’ spending in turn buy inputs from other local firms.
Stephen Boyle, Senior Economist at RBS who oversaw the research said, “Major events like this play an important role in supporting the economies of the hosting cities and give a particular boost to the tourism industry. The Championship will garner extensive media exposure and highlight one of the most historic and challenging golf courses in the United States.”
It is estimated that the Championship will attract 200,000 spectators over the three days of practice and the four days of the competition with a quarter of those visiting from outside Michigan or the United States. The region will also benefit in the longer term from the media exposure the Championship will bring, with 195 countries and territories worldwide broadcasting the games to an estimated 550 million homes.
The golfing attraction compares favorably to other major sporting events such as the 2005 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, which brought $42 million to Metro Detroit.
Locally the net additional spending associated with hosting the Championship will generate enough economic activity to support 220 full-time new jobs each year or 110 new jobs over two years.
Beyond the Championship itself, Charter One and its corporate parent RBS are hosting the “PGA Championship Experience” in Detroit’s Campus Martius Park, August 4 to 8, 2008. The interactive display is open free to the public 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and features hitting nets staffed by PGA Professionals giving free 10-minute instruction, a putting green to test short-game skills, and a giant leader board to track the tournament results. The main attraction will be the RBS Jack Nicklaus Majors Challenge – a state-of-the-art golf simulator that challenges visitors to play the 9th hole at Oakland Hills. Visitors can try to beat the pros with closest to the pin.
“The PGA Championship will come to life not just at Oakland Hills but also in the heart of downtown Detroit,” said Sandra Pierce, President, Charter One Bank, Michigan. “Our sponsorships create experiences for our customers, our colleagues and our community – and make a positive local impact.”
For over a century, RBS has been involved in the game of golf, with ties to three of golf’s four majors, including the U.S. Open, the Open Championship and the PGA Championship. Jack Nicklaus is an RBS Global Ambassador and five-time winner of the PGA Championship. RBS also supports Luke Donald and Paula Creamer as RBS Ambassadors.
About RBS
The RBS Group is one of the world's leading financial services companies providing a range of retail and corporate banking, financial markets, consumer finance, insurance, and wealth management services. RBS Group operates in over 50 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East serving more than 40 million customers and employing more than 170,000 people. In addition to the provision of a full range of banking services under The Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest brands, RBS Group also includes ABN AMRO, Citizens Financial Group, Ulster Bank, Coutts Group, Direct Line and Churchill.
About Charter One
Charter One is a division of RBS Citizens, N.A., operating in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. It has 466 branches and more than 760 ATMs. It has 119 branches and 134 ATMs in Michigan.
RBS Citizens, N.A. is a subsidiary of Citizens Financial Group, Inc., a $160 billion commercial bank holding company headquartered in Providence, R.I. CFG’s two bank subsidiaries are RBS Citizens, N.A. and Citizens Bank of Pennsylvania. They operate a 13-state branch network under the Citizens Bank brand in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont, and the Charter One brand in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio. CFG has non-branch retail and commercial offices in about 40 states. It is one of the 10 largest commercial banking companies in the United States ranked by assets and deposits. CFG is owned by RBS (The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc).
Sources
The research draws on existing evidence and data including the numbers of spectators attending the Championship, where they are traveling from and how much they spend when they visit the Michigan region. We are grateful to the PGA of America for their permission to use data about visitors to the Championship. In addition, we have also drawn on previous research completed by the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau (DMCVB), Comperio Research, Michigan State University and the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis. Conservative assumptions have been made about the scale of the impact.
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