As published in the April 1, 2011 Toledo Business Journal
Judd Silverman,
2011 US Senior Open
US Senior Open will impact Toledo economy
Toledo Business Journal recently interviewed Judd Silverman, championship director of the 2011 US Senior Open. He shared the following thoughts:
Toledo Business Journal: Toledo is hosting the 2011 US Senior open that is only months away. Can you discuss the impact on lodging, restaurants, etc. from visitors to the area?
Judd Silverman: The hospitality and sponsorship sales that we generate will have a direct impact on the local economy. A lot of our major sponsors will be bringing in customers from throughout the country to Toledo for the week of the championship. We feel comfortable that we are going to generate 3,000-3,500 hotel room nights and we anticipate about 125,000 people attending the championship. Most of those people will come from northwest Ohio and southeastern Michigan. We will still have many visitors from outside the area that will come to partake in the event.
I would think that local hotels will see a nice bump in sales the week of the US Senior Open. It’s definitely the kind of sporting event we want to try and bring to Toledo as much as possible. Not only are you going to have 156 players, 156 caddies, USGA officials, and ESPN and NBC television crews coming in, but you’re going to have customers of local companies and media, and volunteers from across the region.
TBJ: In addition to the economic impact, money from the tournament will benefit area charities. Which local charities will receive money and how much have past tournaments raised for area non-profit organizations?
JS: It is stipulated in the USGA contract that the club has to hire a management company to manage the event. Inverness Club has hired our organization, Toledo Classic Inc. Toledo Classic Inc. is a 501(c)(3) that owns and operates the Jamie Farr Toledo Classic LPGA Tournament. Part of our agreement with the club is that 25% of the net proceeds will go to Toledo Classic Inc. Our board of trustees determines which local charities will benefit. We have an annual charity selection process that we go through for the Jamie Farr every year and we kept it in tact for the Senior Open. We typically get about 50 applications. I wish we could select all of the charities, but we choose anywhere from 6 to 10. This year’s charities are; Autism Model School, the Adopt America Network, Toledo Area Ministries, Veggie U, Toledo Basketball Academy, and the Children’s Rights Council of Northwest Ohio.
Every year, we have two core charities with the Jamie Farr Toledo Classic, the Ronald McDonald House of Northwest Ohio and the Jamie Farr Toledo Classic Scholarship Fund. These two charities typically get $75,000 of the net proceeds from the Jamie Farr. Without knowing the outcome of the Senior Open, the Kroger Company has stepped up and guaranteed $50,000 to the Ronald McDonald House and $25,000 to the Scholarship Fund. It’s important for people to understand the significant contribution that Kroger has made in a year where we won’t be playing the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic.
TBJ: Beyond the financial benefits, can you discuss the media attention that the Toledo area will receive during the US Senior Open?
JS: The most significant media exposure that we will receive is from 14 hours of television coverage. Thursday and Friday’s coverage will be broadcast on ESPN. Saturday and Sunday’s coverage will be on NBC. It will be the only time network television comes to Toledo, Ohio this year to cover a sporting event. In addition to the broadcasts domestically, it will go to 160 countries around the world. That is one of the significant benefits of Inverness hosting a major golf tournament like this, free advertising.
TBJ: Can you identify some of the players who are expected to be at the tournament?
JS: We won’t know the final field until June 8. It’s a long list of players who have won major championships and who have been stars on the PGA tour for the past 25 years. The field will be 156 players.
TBJ: Inverness has a history of hosting major tournaments. Can you discuss this history and are there possibilities for other upcoming tournaments in the future?
JS: It was not a difficult sell. Northwest Ohio really turned out and supported the event in 2003 and the USGA was thrilled when the club extended the invitation to host the 2011 Senior Open. The 2003 US Senior Open was the second most successful financially of any of the US Senior Opens that have been played.
I think sometimes we take for granted the history and tradition of Inverness. Inverness reminds me a lot of the Toledo Museum of Art. It has a world-renowned reputation. It has been hosting major golf championships since 1920, when it first hosted the US Open. The club has hosted four US Opens, two PGA Championships, and one US Amateur. Now, they will be hosting their second US Senior Open. Hosting major golf championships is part of Inverness’ history and the club is truly a community asset. When they are able to attract an event like this it does nothing but good things for the community in terms of economic impact and exposure. We hope everyone will support Inverness as they host this championship because we want them to keep doing this. It’s good for Toledo and northwest Ohio.
S.P. Jermain, the founder of the club was a remarkable man who was the city parks commissioner. In 1890, he convinced the mayor and city council to designate where Ottawa Park Golf Course sits right now to become a public golf course. When Ottawa Park opened in 1895, it was the first public golf course west of New York City. He then thought now that we have a public golf course, Toledo needs a world-class private golf course. Jermain and a group of investors purchased the property where Inverness sits. They hired the renowned golf course architect Ronald Ross from Scotland to design the golf course and it opened in 1903.
S.P. Jermain was very involved with the USGA. He convinced them to bring the US Open to Toledo in 1920. Right after that championship, he contacted the PGA of America. The PGA of America owns and operates the PGA Championship, and today, the Ryder Cup. At that time, S.P. Jermain contacted them and said “I think we should have a match were the best American professionals play the best British professionals.” This idea became the Ryder Cup. Today, the Ryder Cup is the largest golf tournament in the world. It’s held every two years. It has generated millions of dollars for the PGA of America. We feel it would only be fair that they bring the Ryder Cup to Inverness, the home of the idea. The next one available is in 2024.
TBJ: How can area companies participate in the event?
JS: There are several sponsorship options, from buying a few tickets all the way up to a number of hospitality packages and advertising options. I will say local businesses are stepping up to the plate and supporting the event. We are grateful for the support and the commitment we have already received. This is going to be a very successful championship. There is still time to get involved and we really urge everybody to get involved at some level.
We are trying to sell the USGA on a future US Open and the PGA of America on bringing the Ryder Cup here someday. This is our time to show these organizations that our community will support major golf championships. The bigger the crowd, the better chance we have of landing a truly big time event in the future.
TBJ: Can you discuss the need for volunteers to support the tournament?
JS: We are putting a volunteer organization together consisting of 2,700 volunteers. To date, we have signed up probably half. There are volunteer opportunities in the following areas; hole marshal, leader board operator, and transportation driver. We are indebted to the thousands of volunteers that will come out and help us organize and manage the event. We couldn’t put on an event this size without the volunteers.
All of the beer will be served in glass bottles from Owens-Illinois. All of our concession stands will be managed by local charities. The money our concessionaire would pay those people on an hourly basis will go to charity. We’ll have probably ten different charities that will benefit from working in the concession stands. The City of Toledo is going to handle all the traffic detail and the Lucas County Sherriff will help us with on-course security. We have a volunteer security committee to check credentials at different points of entry onto the golf course. It is truly is a community effort to help organize and stage the event.
TBJ: Are there any other issues that you would like to address?
JS: It will definitely be a great social event at the US Senior Open. It will be great fun to be out here on the beautiful golf course that has hosted so many successful championships throughout the years. Be a part of it and help us set the stage so that we can bring future championships to historical Inverness.
There are so many ways the community is going to benefit from this. From the exposure, to the economic impact, to the local charities that will benefit from the championship, we hope everyone can find a reason to support the event.