UBS back as sponsor in massive boost for Hong Kong Open golf tournament

Swiss banking giant UBS will make a surprise return as title sponsor of the Hong Kong Open in October, signalling a dramatic upswing in fortunes for the prestigious golf tournament.

Three years after ending an eight-year relationship with the Hong Kong Open, the bank says the time is right to again invest in golf and the tournament.

The multi-year deal, on top of a HK$15 million injection from the government’s Mega Events Fund, is a huge boost for Open organisers, who have struggled to keep the tournament afloat since UBS pulled out in 2012.

The Hong Kong Golf Club was forced to dip into its own pockets to save the event in 2013 and again last year. The tournament also lost its climactic end-of-season spotlight in the European Tour’s Race To Dubai and was repositioned in October.

The decline in prize money – from a high of US$2.75 million to US$1.3 million last year – also resulted in the world’s leading players bypassing Hong Kong.

But the return of UBS brings an immediate US$700,000 boost in prize money – to US$2 million – and the government’s re-engagement promises two players in the world’s top 10 will appear at the Hong Kong Golf Club in Fanling from October 22-25.

The government invested HK$8 million and HK$15 million in the 2011 and 2012 tournaments, but withdrew its helping hand after its primary investment in 2012 – Rory McIlroy – missed the cut and was holidaying with then girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki when Mega Events Fund officials arrived on the weekend to meet the world number one.

Kathy Shih, the head of UBS Wealth Management for Asia-Pacific, said the Hong Kong Open was back in vogue after the bank had shifted its focus to Formula One and modern and contemporary art. The bank is a lead partner of Art Basel in Hong Kong.

“We have always been very supportive of the Hong Kong Open, sponsoring it from 2005 until 2012,” said Shih, pointing out that period included the financial crisis which hit UBS hard. “Golf is a shared passion between us and our clients and we all know a lot of business and a lot of relationships are built on a golf course. That’s something that resonates well with our business and our brand.

“Increasing the prize purse is very important. We want to make an impact and make the tournament better. We have proven that in the past and we will do so again,” said Shih.

Shih also hinted that more entertainment would be built around event week to create a rugby-sevens type atmosphere.

“We want it to be something Hong Kong can be proud of and we are going to work hard promoting the event with the government,” said Shih, a member of the Hong Kong Golf Club.

The European Tour, which sanctions the tournament with the Asian Tour and the Hong Kong Golf Association, said: “We are thrilled to welcome UBS back. There is a sense of being reunited with an old friend in one of the European Tour’s most exciting destinations.

“We would also like to acknowledge the incredible support we have received from the Hong Kong Golf Club over the past three years. Without its commitment to Asia’s oldest professional golf tournament, we would not have been able to accord the event the prestige which it deserves.”

The Hong Kong Open was first played in 1959 and has been won by some of the biggest names in the game, including Peter Thomson, Greg Norman, Ian Woosnam, Bernhard Langer, Tom Watson, Jose Maria Olazabal, Padraig Harrington and McIlroy.