Did anyone else notice that in all the reference to past tournaments, the Golf Channel kept referring to it as the "Chevron" World Challenge? I may have missed something, but isn't this the first year that Chevron is sponsoring the thing? If so, why did highlights of last year's event not get called the "Target World Challenge" which was/is it's official name. Just becuase a new sponsor shows up, do they get rights to all the historical/past tournaments as well?

Just seemed weird to me. If I was Target, I'd be kinda peeved.

This happens each time a tourney/tour changes names....nothing new there.

Its a catch 22, refer to past tournaments as Chevron and Target is upset,
refer to them as Target and Chevron is upset.
But Target had the option to renew I'm sure. As they say, sign of the times.

I beg to differ there. Here in Hartford, our tournament has changed names several times. It was the Canon GHO (Greater Heartford Open), then Buick sponsored it one year, and now it's the Travelers. I have never seen any references to prior tournaments that didn't use the then current moniker. When they show flashbacks of Phil's victories, it's never called the 2001 Travelers, becuase they were not the sponsor at the time.

That's why I thought it was so strange with the Chevron thing.

Yes but on air (TV) when refering to past champions they refer to it as the current name when saying, for example, someone is the past champion.

Ex: They will now say at the STANFORD St Jude next year that Justin Leonard is a Multiple Time Past Champion of the Stanford St Jude NOT "justin has won the Fed Ex St Jude a couple of times and the Stanford St Jude once"....It is the same tourney

did anybody else notice Ak mentioning that he hasn't played in 5 weeks, and his goal is to break 80? What he failed to mention is that he's using new sticks and isn't used to them! And that may be one of the reasons he sprayed a bunch of shots! sneaky, but i like it!

I read somewhere that it is Tour policy to refer to any tournament by the current sponsor's name, regardless of history. Makes sponsor's happy. They don't want to sponsor a tournament only to have someone else's name mentioned on air, in advertising etc.

The Tour won't change any existing media, but anything new produced or discussed will use the most recent sponsor's name.

Check out this article. Notice "[t]he Travelers Championship has been a part of the PGA Tour since 1952, always played in the greater Hartford, Conn., area."

Yeah, I find it rather sickening, the corporate culture. One time, I was watching the FBR Open, formerly simply the Phoenix Open. The announcers made mention of Arnold Palmer winning (I don't remember how many, but let's say 5) FBR Opens. I just about wanted to puke, and scream at the TV, "Nooo, he won 5 PHOENIX Opens".
I guess there's no fighting it, though. Just like in other sports, the stadium names- US Cellular Field, FedEx Field, etc.
Oh well, I suppose I'll go back to work on my laptop, sponsored by Toshiba, and then take my Infiniti Drive To Dinner, proudly presented by Benihana.

Thank God we still have Yankee Stadium.

and cleveland browns stadium.

i don't mind the corporate naming in golf or the other professional sports, but when it gets to college and you have things like Papa Johns Stadium (Louisville) and the Cintas Center (Xavier basketball) it's kinda sad. probably only a matter of time until a historic stadium like Death Valley in Baton Rouge, the Shoe in Columbus or the Big House in Michigan gets a company's name in there.

whatever...as long as the entertainment is good, i think we'll make it through ok.

Thank God we still have Yankee Stadium.
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You say that now, but I've got 6 terrifying words for you- Invesco Field at Mile Hile Park.

Since it's no longer the "real", "historic" Yankee Stadium, what's to keep it from becoming, like Hess Oil Field at Yankee Pavillion, or some other such nonsense.

Ahhhh, rant over. As someone else said, we will survive. That being said, if I ever hear Jim Nantz utter the words "Hello friends, and welcome to The Cadillac Masters, at venerable Taco Bell National of Augusta", there will be violence. I'm just sayin.

I've heard it both ways. Sometimes they call it by the current sponsor. Others by the old. FBR Open for example is routinely still called the Phoenix Open. Nissan Open, LA Open, Northern Trust -- hear them called those interchangeably. It's no big deal...

HOAS - Thanks for the most meaningful and relevant post on the subject. I guess that's my answer right there. It's probably been that way for a while, but sponsor names are so superfluous to me, that I hadn't noticed until this time. The Target World Challenge must have just stuck in my head for some reason.

Thanks, and happy holidays to all.

Who can forget the great Walter Hagen and all those Cialis Western Opens he won?

Yep, it's like that everywhere. For instance, NASCAR has changed sponsors 2 times over the last few years. First, they were NASCAR Winston Cup, then they were Nextel Cup and now they're Sprint Cup. But when they refer to anyone that has won a drivers championship, whether it was last year or 30 years ago, they're refered to as being a Sprint Cup champion.

It is official Tour policy to refer to the current sponsor when referring to any event.

It looked like to me he was playing his old nike blades not the new tw victory red ones. I paused it on the dvr and I believe they were his usual sticks.

you are correct, I was there and looked at his bag in the pro-am. Old blades for sure, complete with lead tape!