Officials from the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) and Ladies European Tour (LET) have announced that The Solheim Cup will operate under a new platform with a select group of Global Partners at the 2009 and 2011 Solheim Cup competitions.
AIB Group and Rolex have committed to join PING, the founding sponsor of The Solheim Cup, as Global Partners to the most prestigious international team event in women’s professional golf.
As Global Partners, AIB Group and Rolex will join PING with top positioning related to the event onsite and in advertising leading up to The Solheim Cup. All three logos will appear onsite at the 2009 Solheim Cup at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill., and again at the 2011 Solheim Cup at Killeen Castle in County Meath, Ireland.
As announced last September, PING will continue its support of The Solheim Cup for the next eight years and will include the 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015 Solheim Cup competitions.
“We are pleased to announce The Solheim Cup will operate with a select group of distinguished global partners who will cross over between multiple Solheim Cup events,” said LPGA Commissioner Carolyn F. Bivens. “This new platform enables longer term planning and more robust activation of the sponsorship in the year of competition and the off year. We welcome Rolex and AIB Group to the family that includes the LPGA, the LET and our founding partner, PING.”
“We are delighted to announce The Solheim Cup’s new Global Partnership and welcome AIB Group and Rolex, who join PING, to the most prestigious and exciting international team event in women’s golf,” said Alexandra Armas, executive director of the LET. “PING, the founding sponsor of The Solheim Cup, has allowed the event to grow to the major level that we see today. With the addition of AIB Group and Rolex as Global Partners to the event, we can look forward to continuing the success of The Solheim Cup for many years to come.”
Rolex’s elevated Global Partner role with The Solheim Cup is a natural extension of their support both in the United States and Europe for the past four Solheim Cup events and adds to the companies’ extensive history and involvement in the sport of golf around the world and its dedication to women’s golf in particular.
The partnership with AIB Group marks the first time the company will support women’s professional golf after more than 10 years of involvement with men’s professional and amateur golf. AIB Group sponsored the Ryder Cup in 2006 and also sponsors the AIB Ladies Irish Open on the LET.
For more information on the 2009 Solheim Cup, including tickets, a schedule of events, hotels and accommodations, log on to www.SolheimCup.com Fans from around the world can purchase tickets on-line. A hotel reservation network has been established to accommodate spectator’s hotel needs in surrounding communities of Aurora, Naperville and throughout DuPage and Kane Counties.