National Bank to sponsor 2005 VIC PGA Championship
BY iseekgolf.com | Von Nida Tour | 2005 Victorian PGA Championship | General | 12 Jan 2005
One of Australia’s big banks has signed on as the naming rights sponsor of the 2005 Victorian PGA Championship. The National Australia Bank has added its financial weight to the prestigious event being played at Sanctuary Lakes Resort from March 2 to 5.
“The Victorian PGA is delighted to have signed such a renowned institution as the National Australia Bank as naming rights sponsor for this event.” said Andrew Lapthorne, PGA Victoria Executive Officer. “The National Australia Bank is an Australian icon brand and we welcome their involvement in golf in Victoria.”
The famous championship, which is part of the Von Nida Tour, returns to Melbourne’s western suburbs for only the second time since its inception in 1922.
Past winners of the title include five-time British Open champion Peter Thomson and modern great Stuart Appleby – winner this week of the USPGA Tour Mercedes Championship in Hawaii.
David McKenzie, beaten in a three-way playoff for the Australian Masters title by another western suburbs boy Richard Green, regularly practices at Sanctuary Lakes and will certainly be a favourite to take out the Victorian PGA Championship. His brother Justin is the resort’s golf coach.
The new sponsorship agreement with NAB is not without a touch of irony, David McKenzie having worked as a bank teller in nearby Werribee during his late teenage years.
Along with McKenzie, Peter Senior – one of only four professionals to win all three Australian “majors” – will also be a favourite to win the 2005 National Bank Victorian PGA Championship.
Source – PGA Australia
