When we embarked upon the journey of sponsoring the Web.com Tour Championship, we didn’t really know what we were getting into. We’re accountants. We’ve sponsored charity fundraisers and played in those, but an internationally-broadcast PGA TOUR event that spans a week (and six months to plan), in a word…a blast. We were proud from the get-go to be part of it, but we had no idea it would take us to such incredible places (as fans, people and as a brand).
First of all, congratulations to the folks who ran this event: Adam, Allie and Cheyenne (and, yes, you too, Dan!). What an amazing job you all did. You were challenged with a new venue, new sponsors, new players, new ideas and, for a second time, weather, and you pulled it off. We applaud David Brown, CEO of Web.com, for having the vision to launch this tour and for keeping it local. Thank you to the volunteers who made it work. Thank you and congrats to the residents of Atlantic Beach and the Atlantic Beach Country Club. You are officially “on the map.”
For us, did we mention we had a blast? To be aligned with the Web.com Tour and PGA TOUR brand was nothing short of incredible. Who would think a locally-owned CPA firm could be the Official CPA Firm of a significant golf championship? We basked in the glow and we are still grinning. The moment it hit us was when we walked into “The Truck” – the nerve center of tournament ops, and we felt immediately like we belonged. We even said Tournament Ops, like we know what we’re talking about. We met an incredible group of guys and had an amazing experience in The Truck (follow them on Twitter).
To see our giant Pivot logo floating in the pool at the Pivot Poolside Lounge was breathtaking. And then to see our logo again (and again and again) all over the course was so cool. Our party on Saturday night was fantastic – great job Kim Paige and Allie Rohrer for providing incredible music. Thanks to the rain, we had to hustle to move 140 people from a huge outdoor space to a less huge (but still big!) indoor space, and it was flawless…a Purple Party like we’ve never seen.
Oh yeah…the golf part. Congratulations to those Web.com players who received their Tour cards. As you chase your dream you embody what we love about this tour: humility, hard work, passion, team work, entrepreneurship, vision. You are like many of our clients (and we hope some day you will be one!). And about Sam Saunders shooting a 59 in the first day? Don’t be fooled by anyone thinking this is less golf than the PGA TOUR…there were 17 prior PGA TOUR winners out there and two major winners. There was some great, great golf. And to those of you who missed the mark, the beauty of golf is there is always another chance. We look forward to seeing you next year. Keep battling!
Our favorite story: Sam Saunders making the turn on round two. Walking off the tee box, the wind blew the sign off the pole the standard bearer was carrying (a 12 year old kid). The kid was on his knees trying to put it together. Sam was 15-20 yards ahead of him, but took notice and doubled back to re-assemble the sign – and more importantly, to help the kid get over his embarrassment. Way to go Sam…the 59 was cool, but that act of graciousness was what this game is all about. By the way, Sam is Arnold Palmer’s grandson. DNA.
It was a blast seeing our name in lights, having a great party and watching incredible golf. Most amazing was being able to spend time with our clients, friends and staff outside the office and inside the ropes (another golf term we learned!).
It was a great week in the timeline of Pivot. Being part of the community is what we do, and this was a big moment for the community. Congrats again to all who made it happen and to all who reaped the rewards. We loved being part of it. We look forward to doing it again next year. Start the countdown clock.
