UGA will operate pro golf event

ATHENS —- The University of Georgia is getting into the pro golf business, hosting and operating a Nationwide Tour event for the next three years.

UGA President Michael Adams announced the deal Wednesday, saying the event is designed to be “self-supporting” and that all profits will go toward need-based scholarships for UGA students.

The event, to be played on the UGA Golf Course and called the “Athens Classic at UGA,” preserves Athens’ stop on the Nationwide Tour, which is a step below the PGA Tour in golf’s pecking order.

The Nationwide Tour has held its Athens event at Jennings Mill Country Club since 2006, but the financially troubled club’s contract expired after this year’s event in April. That left a 2010 Athens tournament in doubt before the UGA deal developed.

The Auxiliary Services Department —- not the Athletic Association —- will operate the tournament. The course opened in 1968 and underwent a major renovation in 2006.

Georgia’s initial budget to start the event will be about $500,000, according to George Stafford, a recently retired UGA associate vice president who Adams said will help run the tournament.

A contract with the Nationwide Tour is expected to be completed by the end of the week, UGA said. Revenue streams will include sales of sponsorships and pro-am berths.

While it is unusual for a college to operate a professional sporting event, Ohio State has had a Nationwide Tour event since 2007.

The tour’s 2010 schedule won’t be finalized until the fall, but the Athens event is expected to be played in April.

Nationwide Tour president Bill Calfee, in Athens for Wednesday’s announcement, said the event will bring deserved attention to the UGA Golf Course.

“I had an opportunity to tour the course and, wow, it is amazing,” Calfee said. “I can’t wait to help showcase and highlight it.”