KLUP 2/15 AT&T

AT&T Inc. has signed a 10-year naming-rights deal for two links courses under development at TPC San Antonio, which may be the first resort course to sell a traditional naming-rights sponsorship. John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty here with today's San Antonio Business Journal news feature. "This is the first time that a destination golf course, that I know of, has been named after a consumer brand," says Dave Pillsbury, who manages the TPC network as president of PGA Tour Golf Course Properties, a subsidiary of the PGA Tour. The Tournament Players Club (TPC) consists of 26 golf venues either owned, operated or licensed by the PGA Tour. The TPC network was developed, in part, to reduce the tour's dependence on television revenue. AT&T is still examining how to leverage the investment, but logos will be kept to a minimum. "We don't want branding to be all over the place," says Eric Fernandez, executive director of sponsorships and events for AT&T. "It's got to be organic. We're going to focus on integrating our technology into the golfing experience." For San Antonio area homes and real estate, call John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty.