US-based fantasy and sports betting operator FanDuel has signed a multi-year content and marketing agreement with the PGA Tour, with a view to expanding upon the increased betting momentum on professional golf markets seen in 2020.
Golf represented the highest single event handle on FanDuel Sportsbook on nine of the last 12 Sundays, with the operator’s total golf handle for 2020 already surpassing amounts wagered on the sport in 2019.
The growth took place despite the cancellation of 13 weeks of PGA Tour competitions during the professional sports shutdown caused by the novel coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic.
By joining PGA’s official betting operator program, FanDuel will receive rights to use PGA Tour marks, advertise within Tour media and partner platforms, as well as receiving content and video rights to create pre-game and post-game betting programming. The operator will also gain permission for the distribution of tour highlights to users who have placed bets.
In addition, the PGA Tour and FanDuel will collaborate to deliver odds-based content to fans via platforms such as pgatour.com and the PGA Tour app.
“Golf interest is up on FanDuel, so we are excited to deepen our relationship with the PGA Tour,” FanDuel chief marketing officer Mike Raffensperger said.
“We will now be able to offer unique gaming experiences on our platform, special Tour related promotions for our customers and an enhanced content experience across the Tour’s properties to really prove to bettors across the nation that there are More Ways to Win at FanDuel.”
Norb Gambuzza, senior vice president of media and gaming at the PGA Tour, commented: “We have long admired FanDuel’s brand, product and marketing strategies as well as the leadership position it has taken since the legalization of sports betting in 2018.
“We are excited to bring FanDuel into the PGA Tour’s official betting operator program as we continue to engage new fans in this rapidly growing space.”
PGA Tour opened its sponsorship opportunities to gambling companies in February 2019, in a move which reflected the changing attitudes of sports leagues towards legalised gambling. Prior to this, PGA Tour had prohibited any association with gambling companies.
DraftKings became the Tour’s first official betting partner in July 2020, after originally signing up as its official daily fantasy partner in July 2019. Additional deals this year saw brands such as BetMGM and PointsBet sign official sports betting partnerships with the tour.