Wells Fargo ending longstanding sponsorship of PGA Quail Hollow tournament
Wells Fargo said Friday that the bank is ending its longtime sponsorship of the Wells Fargo Championship played at the Quail Hollow Club, with the change starting in 2025.
The annual PGA tour event is set for May 6-12. What happens next to the high-profile sporting event for the Charlotte region was not immediately clear.
“Wells Fargo is not renewing the Wells Fargo Championship as a signature event in 2025 and beyond,” the bank said in a statement. ”To drive efficiency and support our business long-term, we regularly review and adjust our overall sponsorship strategy.”
The San Francisco-based bank has sponsored the championship since the tournament began 20 years ago. Wells Fargo has more than 27,000 employees in Charlotte, the largest employee base for the company.
In response to Charlotte Observer questions seeking comment about Wells Fargo’s surprise action, the PGA Tour provided a statement saying: “The tour plans to remain in Charlotte for the long-term and we are in active discussions with potential new title sponsors for 2025 and beyond.”
The PGA also praised Wells Fargo for helping create and sustain one of the top golf events in the Carolinas.
Local tournament organizers did not respond to requests for comment Friday.
Wells Fargo’s tournament decision does not represent a change to the bank’s commitment to the Charlotte region, the bank said in its statement, noting that it plans to invest over $500 million over the next five years to upgrade workspaces in Charlotte.
Factors leading to the Wells Fargo’s move to end its sponsorship of the PGA event, according to the Charlotte Business Journal, include uncertainty about the PGA Tour’s long-term financial structure, wanting to spread out sponsorships to other sports in the Charlotte region and concern about sustaining the record-setting $2 million charitable donations made by the tournament this year. The CBJ was the first to report about the bank’s decision.
The Wells Fargo Championship has generated more than $30 million for charities, according to the bank.
The PGA championship also has an economic impact of about $75 million each year in Charlotte, according to Wells Fargo. That includes local businesses, such as Manolo’s Bakery and The Vintage Goat beverage truck, being featured with other companies in the annual business market at the tournament.
About the Wells Fargo Championship
The Wells Fargo Championship, traditionally held in early May, debuted in 2003 as the Wachovia Championship and for two years — in 2009 and 2010 — was known as the Quail Hollow Championship after Wells Fargo bought out Wachovia and removed that company’s branding.
Twice since the tournament’s inception, the tournament was moved to a secondary location, both times because Quail Hollow hosted major golf events and needed to prepare the course.
In 2017, the tournament moved to Eagle Point Golf Club of Wilmington when the course hosted the PGA Championship later that year; and in 2022, the Wells Fargo was played at TPC Potomac in Maryland with Quail Hollow set to host the President’s Cup that fall.
Many of professional golf’s top players have competed regularly at the Wells Fargo Championship, and the tournament’s list of winners includes Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Vijay Singh and Jim Furyk.
The course’s three final holes, known as “The Green Mile,” are regarded on the PGA Tour as one of the tougher finishing stretches on the circuit.
The PGA Tour has seen some dramatic shifts in leadership and philosophy in recent years as it first attempted to compete with the fledgling LIV Tour before entering into a convoluted merger agreement this year.
Among the many changes the tour made was to designate certain tournaments as “signature events,” of which the Wells Fargo is one. Among the changes to “signature” events is a doubled prize purse — up to $20 million this past season at the Quail Hollow event .
The newest wrinkle is a smaller field of players and not cut. Traditional professional tournaments typically run four days, with a cut down after the first two days of play.
About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo is continuing to deal with the aftermath of a 2016 sales scandal revelations that employees opened millions of accounts without permission from customers.
Just in the past week, a former CEO sued the bank for $34 million, claiming he was made a scapegoat over the scandal. And on Tuesday, Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharpf said the bank is planning to be “more aggressive” about layoffs, and expects higher severance costs in the fourth quarter than initially expected.
Adam Bell and Justin Pelletier contributed to this report
