Fore the Win: Charlotte Hosts Presidents Cup Captains

Last week, Charlotte played host to professional golfers Davis Love III and Trevor Immelman, the captains of the 2022 Presidents Cup teams, as they toured Quail Hollow Club – where the U.S. and International teams will compete next September. The pair was also able to meet with city dignitaries as they announced several new local partnerships for the upcoming tournament.  

The Presidents Cup is a premier international PGA TOUR event held biennially and comprised of matches between the United States and an International Team of players from the rest of the world except Europe. Originally scheduled for 2021, the Charlotte event was delayed a year due to the coronavirus pandemic and will take place at Quail Hollow Club Sept. 20-25, 2022.

Luquire has a long history of involvement working with the PGA TOUR and PGA of America to bring big-time golf events to life in the Queen City, including the 2017 PGA Championship and the Wells Fargo Championship held each spring at Quail Hollow Club. And, back in 2019 in preparation for the Presidents Cup to arrive on Charlotte soil, the Luquire PR team planned a weeklong Charlotte activation concurrent with the 2019 Presidents Cup in Melbourne, Australia, including a celebrity golf competition and a series of brewery watch parties.   

During the Captains Visit, Luquire worked closely with our communications counterparts at the PGA TOUR to secure local media opportunities for U.S. Captain Davis Love III and International Team Captain Trevor Immelman, Presidents Cup Executive Director Adam Sperling, Presidents Cup 2022 Chair Johno Harris and Quail Hollow Club President Johnny Harris. Luquire was tapped because of our media relations expertise to help the Tour capitalize on opportunities in Charlotte and drive markets and promote ticket sales, which go live Oct. 1.

The week kicked off Tuesday with a fireside chat with both captains at the Pavilion Terrace at Quail Hollow Club, moderated by Stewart Moore of the PGA TOUR. Our team lined up dozens of local and national media to attend the event, where the captains were quick to denote Quail Hollow as the perfect venue for a match play event. Captain Immelman said, “I struggle to think of a better place to hold a team event like this,” while Love praised the storied Quail Hollow Green Mile, calling it “an incredible place to watch the pressure points of the match.” 

Then on Wednesday, the captains spent a whirlwind day making their way through uptown Charlotte in their respective team carts visiting the NASCAR Hall of Fame, playing Chippo with Panthers legends Thomas Davis and Wesley Walls (and Sir Purr, of course!) and rubbing elbows with the Charlotte Hornets. They also made a pit stop at Atrium Health’s Levine Children’s Hospital to announce Atrium as the official health care sponsor of the tournament and present a $50,000 donation to the Atrium Health Foundation.

The day concluded with an unveiling of a new giant mural near the Charlotte Convention Center celebrating the Cup’s touchdown in Charlotte. The mural features larger than life portraits of both captains, as well as a cityscape of Uptown Charlotte and the first-ever course-specific Presidents Cup logo, an ode to Quail Hollow. Mayor Vi Lyles spoke at the event, calling Charlotte a “world-class city” and noting she believes the Queen City was chosen as host “because we have a collaborative, cooperative spirit to help people do well when they come to our city.” 

Overall, the Luquire team secured more than two dozen local media placements resulting in 4.5 million impressions throughout the week, just as ticket sales are getting underway. The Presidents Cup will continue to host activations throughout the host city over the next year and we hope you’ll follow along for the ride. We’re just getting started!