ORLANDO, Florida — The LPGA’s 2018 advertising campaign made its debut on Golf Channel ahead of the season-opening Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic, with the campaign's emphasis on 'A Global Tour Like No Other' and the accessibility and personality of its players.
The 2018 edition of the LPGA’s campaign was created by Austin-based ad agency Divot Group and the spots will be rolled out during telecasts on Golf Channel over the first several tournaments of the 2018 LPGA Tour season, starting with this week’s event at the Ocean Club Golf Course in Paradise Island, Bahamas.
The playful, light-hearted ad series aims to showcase the diverse nationalities of LPGA Tour players while emphasizing their approachability and personality. One spot (Language) highlights the challenges of playing all round the world, such as the potential pitfalls of language applications, but ultimately concludes: "winning translates in any language."
Another spot (Global Launch) states: "…to be the best in the world, you have to beat the best in the world," and yet another (Next Wave) focuses on the "movement" happening in women’s golf with the "next wave" of competition making it tougher than ever to win on the LPGA Tour.
"Two distinct themes have emerged on the LPGA Tour: its truly global nature and the approachability and accessibility of its players," said LPGA Chief Commercial Officer Jon Podany. "The LPGA is uniquely golf’s global tour with players representing 32 countries, tournaments in 14 countries and TV distributed to more than 170 countries.
"The best players in the world come to play on the LPGA and the competition is better than ever. This campaign brings that to life, as well as showcases the diverse personalities of our players."
Rolex Rankings World No. 3 So Yeon Ryu, a five-time winner on the LPGA Tour, relished the opportunity to participate in the creation of the TV ad spots.
"We had such a great time filming these ads!" said So Yeon. "I enjoyed teaching Jessica Korda a bit of Korean for our ‘Language’ ad, and it was so adorable to see her worrying if she might mispronounce some of the words."
One of the punchlines in the Language ad was So Yeon saying to Korda: "You just said you want some cheese monkey!" after Korda had tried to order food using a language app.
"I think that the concepts for both the ‘Language’ and ‘Frequent Flyer’ ads really express where the LPGA Tour stands today," said So Yeon. "Like it mentions in ‘Frequent Flyer’, we had tournaments held in a total of 15 different countries in 2017! The LPGA Tour is getting more global each year, and as players we have to give back to the community for their huge efforts and support. I hope everyone enjoys these ads."
The 2018 season continues to feature players from across the globe with representatives from 32 nations. Last season produced 22 different winners from eight countries while five players from four different countries occupied the top spot in the Rolex Rankings during 2017.
Further eye-catching elements last year were the depth and quality of competition. The 2017 Tour went 15 events before having a repeat winner, tied for the longest streak in LPGA history, and a record 12 players ended the season with a scoring average below 70 - the previous best was five players set in 2016.
In addition to the LPGA’s Golf Channel telecasts, the 2018 ad spots will be featured through the LPGA’s international television partners, on LPGA.com, and via the LPGA’s social media channels, including YouTube, Twitter and Facebook beginning on Thursday, January 25.
