Northwest Arkansans ambling between the greens at Pinnacle Country Club a few weeks ago got a taste of more than incredible barbecue, fresh basil pizza, and the sweet air of Rogers, Arkansas. They savored a cultural phenomenon. Bentonville, Fayetteville, and Rogers, Arkansas, played host to top women golfers from across the globe—and local Razorbacks—to celebrate community and the competitive spirit. The impact of the Northwest Arkansas LPGA Championship doesn’t stop at the dog-leg left at 18. It spans the sport, Arkansas, and the world.
Economic and Social Impact
Thousands of people donned their visors and sunblock, bringing both fun and funds to the scenic hills of Rogers. Local businesses, such as the coalition of eateries comprising BITE NW Arkansas, enjoyed a welcome week in the black. Dozens of local businesses sponsored the event, showcasing their goods and services to fans and competitors from multiple continents and corners of Arkansas.
The Pinnacle Country Club is an Eden of manicured maples and pristine pines. Coupled with diverse delectables and a community with open arms, the Club embraced tourists from around the world. While they may have come for the golf, they left with a range of reasons to return—and bring their wallets along with them.
The tournament rallied around diversity, celebrating with organizations such as Black-Owned Northwest Arkansas, Serve2Perform’s LatinXNA, and Northwest Arkansas Equality. It also prioritized sustainability, earning the distinction of GEO Certification from the GEO Sustainable Golf Foundation.
Celebration of Excellence in Golf
The competition brought their A-game as the tournament wound down to a tense playoff between Jasmine Suwannapura and Lucy Li. Both finished 17 under par, with the next nine competitors within five strokes or less. Texans paired with South Africans, Hawaiians with Swedes, and French with Bostonians, making Northwest Arkansas a delicious cultural melting pot.
And this is what the LPGA tour is all about. Top women athletes from across the planet bring their caddies and cultures hoping for cash. In 2024, players vied for $116.55 million in official money and $118 million in total prizes. This represents a 69% increase over the previous high of around $70 million in 2021.
Many were fresh off Olympic performances at the Le Golf National in France, where they represented their countries on the world’s highest stage. At the same time, the LPGA unites elite women golfers from all walks of life, including many who may not have made the Olympic cut. The broad, diverse representation of excellence serves as inspiration to young golfers at each stop on the tour, as well as those watching TV coverage and highlights online. It lets young putters know that, with enough practice, people who look like them can play like that. Excellence has no ethnicity.
Engaging Events During Tournament Week
The tournament week consists of two primary events with many other opportunities for businesses and fans sprinkled throughout.
First, there’s the Pro-Am tournament. In a Pro-Am, amateur golfers pair up with professionals, playing the course side-by-side. For instance, in November, WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark will team up with a pro at The Annika LPGA event. But not all Pro-Am competitors are capable of setting multiple WNBA records, and many have no fame at all—outside of their local club. If you can swing the entrance fee, you can apply to play in a Pro-Am tournament. Local business leaders can make an employee’s dreams come true by sponsoring them for tournament play. They also get the chance to highlight their products, services, and brand in front of a deep pool of local, national, and international customers.
Topgolf, a company that combines in-person, custom golf games with a digital experience, sponsors a Champions Pairing and Networking event. Participants, regardless of skill level, get to swing and putt through a series of games where their scores get computer-tabulated with the assistance of balls embedded with microchips. It’s a chance for local business reps to shake hands, sip and chip, and talk business—or not—with other professionals in the area.
With so many members of the business and consumer community milling around, the event was a platinum opportunity to connect and spark growth. And sponsorship opportunities abounded. There were four free viewing areas, at holes 1, 16, 17, and 18, where people could watch the best golfers in the world without paying a dime. There was also an area dedicated solely to young golf fans, complete with booths and games designed to keep them skipping through the day. Autograph alley was another fan-favorite, giving spectators a chance to get up close and personal with their favorite bunker-beaters.
Cox Business as a Proud Sponsor
Cox Business is a firm believer in what the LPGA Tour represents: the power of connections that eliminate boundaries and foster opportunity. And its because of this, Cox Business is proud to be a sponsor of the 2024 NWA LPGA Championship. We have rooted ourselves in the success of local communities, providing customized networking solutions for a diverse range of business models and IT architectures. These roots have fed both our growth and that of the partners we work with, including the LPGA tour.
The NWA LPGA Championship unites some of the world’s top athletes with the fans they inspire. It also gives business leaders the chance to reach out to thousands of customers and inspire each other in both formal networking sessions and casual connections. Cox Business understands the power of helping people and systems come together to solve problems, making the LPGA tour an ideal partner.
Cox and the LPGA: Foster Excellence Through Connection
With a bouquet of yellow roses to her right and smiling fans in the background, Thailand’s Jasmine Suwannapura raised the trophy with a proud grin. Yet everyone in the community was a winner, from local businesses to tourism to young girls keeping their noses down and swinging through.
Cox Business and the NWA LPGA Championship inspire excellence by bringing people together. Whether you’re a business leader looking to network with your contemporaries, an aspiring golf pro, or a parent with the next Jasmine Suwannapura, we encourage you to participate and support LPGA events. We’ll see you there. To learn more about how Cox can help your business create and innovate, connect with us today.
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