ATLANTA, July 20, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The PGA TOUR and Ticketmaster, a Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc., (Nasdaq:TKTM) operating business, have entered into a new partnership whereby Ticketmaster will be the exclusive ticketing outlet for the TOUR's Championship Management division, which owns and operates 13 tournaments on the PGA TOUR and Champions Tour. As part of this agreement, the TOUR and Ticketmaster have announced a joint ticket promotion for The Playoff Finale of the FedExCup, THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. Multi-platinum rock band Journey is teaming up with THE TOUR Championship for an exclusive concert on Saturday, Sept 19. Fans have the opportunity to purchase limited VIP packages that include access to the Playoff Finale, as well as tickets for a concert by Journey to benefit the East Lake Foundation, one of THE TOUR Championship's primary charities.
Net proceeds from the more than 500 available packages sold will benefit the East Lake Foundation, and tournament officials hope to raise more than $100,000 through this offer alone. The ticket package includes the following:
- Two premium, covered, lower-level tickets to Journey, in concert, on Sept. 19 at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Alpharetta, Ga., and a parking pass;
- Two MasterCard Championship Club tickets to Thursday's opening round of THE TOUR Championship on Sept. 24 at historic East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Ga.;
- An official gift bag that includes merchandise vouchers for the tournament, a Journey DVD, one dozen Bridgestone golf balls and more.
This exclusive package goes on sale via www.PGATOUR.COM/tourchampionship today for the special introductory price of $325. On August 1, the package will be $350.
"Ticketmaster and Journey are eager to work with THE TOUR Championship on its charitable initiatives, and we are excited to be part of the PGA TOUR's program of giving back to the community," said Ticketmaster CEO Irving Azoff. "Through our partnership with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, we are pleased with the opportunity to help raise additional, much-needed funds for the East Lake Foundation. We're looking forward to a great show."
"We look at this opportunity as a way to build upon our recently launched TICKETS Fore CHARITY(tm) campaign and amplify our charitable impact in the Atlanta community," said THE TOUR Championship Executive Director Todd Rhinehart. "Journey is an iconic band that puts on a fantastic show, and this ticket package allows us to expand our reach beyond tournament week and outside the gates of East Lake. Our mission is to exceed our record charitable donation of $1.4 million from the 2008 event, and a unique offer like this is one way we plan to accomplish that goal."
Journey - Neal Schon (guitar), Jonathan Cain (keyboards), Ross Valory (bass), Deen Castronovo (drums) and Arnel Pineda (vocals) - earned Platinum honors in 2008 for their latest album, Revelation, marking their 11th Platinum album certification to date. Journey plays with a passion and commitment that wows both longtime fans and new generations of listeners alike. More than 700,000 fans attended their 2008 tour alone to hear the new hit singles "Never Walk Away" and "After All These Years" as well as the staggering catalogue of hits such as "Don't Stop Believin'," "Any Way You Want It," "Open Arms," "Faithfully," "Stone In Love," and "Separate Ways."
Since 1998, THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola has donated more than $9 million to a variety of local and national charities - including $1.4 million in 2008 alone. Primary beneficiaries are the East Lake Foundation and The First Tee. Founded in 1995 on the belief that everyone deserves a chance to succeed, the East Lake Foundation (www.eastlakefoundation.org) collaborates with public and private organizations to offer Atlanta's East Lake residents opportunities to build a better future through education for children and adults, affordable housing and connections with the broader community. Other cities seeking to transform their neighborhoods are turning to the Foundation for best practices.
THE TOUR Championship will again feature the top-30 players in the FedExCup standings following the BMW Championship in Chicago. However, changes to the qualifying structure for the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, as well as a points reset immediately preceding THE TOUR Championship, will make for an even more exciting event, as the winner of the FedExCup will ultimately be decided at East Lake Golf Club.
Tickets to THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola are available at www.PGATOUR.COM/tourchampionship. Daily and Weekly tickets are available starting Wednesday of tournament week, September 23.
ABOUT THE COCA-COLA COMPANY
The Coca-Cola Company is the world's largest beverage company, refreshing consumers with more than 450 sparkling and still brands. Along with Coca-Cola, recognized as the world's most valuable brand, the Company's portfolio includes 12 other billion dollar brands, including Diet Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Coca-Cola Zero, vitaminwater, POWERade, Minute Maid and Georgia Coffee. Globally, we are the No. 1 provider of sparkling beverages, juices and juice drinks and ready-to-drink teas and coffees. Through the world's largest beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the Company's beverages at a rate of 1.5 billion servings a day. With an enduring commitment to building sustainable communities, our Company is focused on initiatives that protect the environment, conserve resources and enhance the economic development of the communities where we operate. For more information about our Company, please visit our website at www.thecoca-colacompany.com.
ABOUT TICKETMASTER ENTERTAINMENT, INC.
Ticketmaster Entertainment consists of Ticketmaster and Front Line Management Group. As the world's leading live entertainment ticketing and marketing company, Ticketmaster connects the world to live entertainment. Ticketmaster operates in 20 global markets, providing ticket sales, ticket resale services, marketing and distribution through www.ticketmaster.com, one of the largest e-commerce sites on the Internet; approximately 7,100 retail outlets; and 17 worldwide call centers. Established in 1976, Ticketmaster serves more than 10,000 clients worldwide across multiple event categories, providing exclusive ticketing services for leading arenas, stadiums, professional sports franchises and leagues, college sports teams, performing arts venues, museums, and theaters. In 2008, the Company sold more than 141 million tickets valued at over $8.9 billion on behalf of its clients. Ticketmaster Entertainment acquired a controlling interest in Front Line Management Group in October 2008. Founded by Irving Azoff and Howard Kaufman in 2004, Front Line Management Group is the world's leading artist management company. Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. is headquartered in West Hollywood, California (Nasdaq:TKTM).
ABOUT SOUTHERN COMPANY
With nearly 4.4 million customers and more than 42,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE:SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast, one of America's fastest-growing regions. A leading U.S. producer of electricity, Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Southern Company brands are known for excellent customer service, high reliability and retail electric prices that are significantly below the national average. Southern Company has been listed the top ranking U.S. electric service provider in customer satisfaction for nine consecutive years by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Visit our Web site at http://www.southerncompany.com/.
Hope-Beckham Inc.
Tom Hughes, Senior VP
404.604.2615
THughes@hopebeckham.com