Professional Golf of Malaysia (PGM), UMW Corporation Sdn. Bhd. (UMW) and MST Golf Management Sdn. Bhd. (MST) are pleased to announce the signing of a Tripartite Agreement for the “PGM-UMW Road to Olympics 2016” program, which was held on 9th February 2015 at PNB Darby Park Executive Suites. The sponsorship amount of RM1,772,700 by UMW is to be spread throughout the duration of the program.
The PGM-UMW Road to Olympics 2016’s program, the brainchild of the Chairman of PGM, YABhg Tun Ahmad Sarji bin Abdul Hamid, is to provide an opportunity for the top ranked Malaysian professional golfers, on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), to participate in a support programme geared towards qualifying for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This comprehensive and holistic program is developed and promoted by PGM, with UMW as the Main Sponsor and MST as the facilitator to manage the development programme.
At the same event, PGM and MST also signed an agreement to collaborate on ensuring the success of the PGM-UMW Road to Olympics 2016 programme and the smooth execution of the Tripartite Agreement. This was followed by the signing of the Players’ Agreement between PGM, MST and each of the professional golfers who will be participating in the programme.
YABhg Tun Ahmad Sarji bin Abdul Hamid, the Chairman of PGM, said that the PGM-UMW Road to Olympics 2016 is part of the long-term strategy of PGM to elevate the standard of professional golf in Malaysia. This program will make use of the current tournament’s schedule in the PGM Tour Calendar 2015 and 2016, in particular the 12 tournaments jointly sanctioned with the Asian Development Tour (ADT) in the 2015 Calendar.
“These jointly sanctioned tournaments with ADT have been granted OWGR points which are awarded to the top six placed players and ties. With the improved performance of Malaysian professional golfers in recent PGM tournaments, and having home advantage by playing in Malaysia, I believe our Pros should be able to collect enough points to qualify for the 2016 Olympics through the ADT events,” said Tun Ahmad Sarji bin Abdul Hamid.
“However, we also need our Pros to be exposed to playing overseas and in bigger tournaments to collect OWGR points. Hence, we provide the incentives to do so by reimbursing part of their overseas competitions expenses,” added YABhg Tun Ahmad Sarji.
On the sponsorship of UMW, YABhg Tun Ahmad Sarji said: “UMW has always been a strong supporter of PGM activities since we started our Tour in 2010. We really appreciate the trust and confidence that UMW has given to PGM to date. We will ensure that PGM-UMW Road to Olympics 2016 will achieve its target and that we will be very transparent in implementing the programme.
“For the 12 Malaysian Pros invited to be part of this programme, I hope they will make full use of the programme, which has been properly planned so that they will be able to reach their full potential, as it is flexible enough without disrupting their own training program. Of course, they should also be honoured to be associated with UMW as the main sponsor of the program”, he added.
YBhg Tan Sri Asmat bin Kamaluddin, the Chairman of UMW, said: “We are proud to be invited to be the main sponsor of the PGM-UMW Road to Olympics 2016 programme. I have seen the PGM Tour grow since its inception and personally witnessed the improvement of some of our Pros and what is most heartening is to see the emergence of young Malaysian talents as a result of the PGM Tour tournaments.
“As a corporate body, we believe that UMW has to play a part in promoting sports and support the government’s effort in promoting sports as a unifying factor and also to carry the Malaysian flag overseas. We hope that other corporate bodies would also contribute to other sports as part of elevating Malaysian sports in general”, added YBhg Tan Sri Asmat.
Mr. Paul Gibbons, Director of Marketing, MST Golf, said: “It is an honour for MST to be given the trust by PGM and UMW to carry out this programme. We have been involved in assisting PGM in its effort to uplift the standard of Malaysian professional golfers for the last few years through the PGM Peak Performance Golf Academy. Thus, we share the same aspirations and will ensure the success of this program.”
On behalf of the players, Danny Chia had this to say: “I’m sure the top 12 players selected for this programme will make full use of the opportunities provided to them. Personally for me it will be really beneficial because since my surgery I have been spending quite a lot of money on my treatment and rehabilitation to regain the strength in my right arm and with this programme they will offer physio and gym training and I think it will be tremendous for my fitness.”