Augusta, US, April 5: The Indian footprint on European golf courses saw further expansion as the European Tour announced an exciting three-event series called the “Hero Challenge”, a one-hole innovative knock-out contest that will be held as part of the week’s golfing extravaganza at the British Masters, Scottish Open and the DP World Tour Championships.
The expansion plans were revealed by European Tour’s Chief Executive Keith Pelley and Pawan Munjal, the Chairman, Managing Director and CEO of Hero MotoCorp. Hero are already sponsors of events on various Tours around the world. The Hero Indian Open is part of the European Tour’s International Calendar, while the Hero Women’s Indian open is part of the Ladies European Tour and the Hero World Challenge is a special event on the PGA Tour.
Munjal said, “The name of the game is innovation and it is important to draw more people to our sport. The Hero Challenge at the British Masters last year was a massive success and we wanted to build on it. The 72-hole golf format for big events like the Masters and the Majors and other events will continue, but we need to bring in younger audiences and this exciting innovation seeks to do that.”
Pelley added, “The European Tour is very excited to have the Hero Challenge at some of our leading events, including the DP World Tour Championships and we are fortunate to have someone like Pawan Munjal, who shares our innovative vision.”
The first Hero Challenge was held before the British Masters at The Grove last October, when eight players went head-to-head in straight knock-out matches. The event was won by Frenchman Alexander Levy and the contest was held under floodlights. The one-hour long event, which also saw celebrity participation was televised live and attracted social media engagement that exceeded the coverage of the four days of the main event.
The Hero Challenge is an added attraction for fans who will get to see top class golf at the various event.
