(PHOENIX) – PING has bolstered its men’s tour rosters worldwide with an infusion of emerging talent and accomplished veterans in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
K.J. Choi, Lee Westwood and long-hitting Cameron Champ are among the pros who’ve signed or renewed contracts to play PING equipment, Chairman & CEO John A. Solheim announced.
“There’s a lot of excitement around PING for the level of talent we’ve been seeing in players from every corner of the world,” Solheim said. “Our development team has done a great job identifying and supporting these players who display such promise and will be promoting the PING brand. From the rookies who are making names for themselves, all the way up to the names every golf fan will recognize, we’re looking forward to watching the year’s tournaments unfold.”
PGA Tour
PING’s PGA Tour roster is growing from 17 to 23 with the arrival of several players who had successful seasons on the Web.com Tour. Chief among them is Austin Cook, who has already won during the 2017-18 season as a rookie, claiming the RSM Classic last November. His fellow Web.com grads are Corey Conners, Stephan Jaeger, Nate Lashley, Tom Lovelady, Rob Oppenheim, Martin Piller and Andrew Landry.
K.J. Choi, an eight-time PGA Tour winner and the first Korean to earn a PGA Tour card and to win on tour, agreed to a multi-year deal. The 47-year-old is Asia’s winningest golfer, amassing 22 victories worldwide and more than $32 million in earnings.
European Tour
On the European Tour, Westwood signed a multi-year agreement, continuing an affiliation that goes back to his teen years with PING. The 44-year-old Englishman has 23 European Tour titles and 42 total career wins, making him second on the list of England’s most prolific champions. PING’s roster includes his countryman Tyrrell Hatton (world #18 and a two-time winner last season) and Andy Sullivan.
They’re joined by several new staffers, notably Matt Wallace of England, who won last year’s Open de Portugal to secure his card. Up-and-comers Matthias Schwab of Austria and Connor Syme of Scotland both come with stellar amateur credentials. Schwab is a product of PING’s collegiate program, and was a three-time All American at Vanderbilt University. Syme competed in the 2017 Walker Cup for Great Britain & Ireland. Nico Geyger and Jonathan Thomson are rookies to watch. Australian Adam Bland, a past major winner on the Japan Golf Tour, earned his card via the PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit.
PGA Tour Champions
Reigning 2017 Charles Schwab Cup overall champion Kevin Sutherland renewed his agreement, as did two-time Champions Tour major winner Jeff Maggert, who begins his 31st year with PING. Miguel Ángel Jiménez and Kirk Triplett also re-signed. New to the list is Ken Tanigawa, a longtime highly ranked amateur in Arizona who won that state’s amateur title in 2015 and again in 2017, at age 49. He qualified for the senior circuit last December.
Web.com Tour
PING welcomes Cameron Champ, a long-hitting 22-year-old from Sacramento, Calif., who played on the 2017 U.S. Walker Cup team and turned pro last fall. He was one of two amateurs to make the cut at the 2017 U.S. Open, where he led the entire field in driving distance with a PING G400 LST driver, averaging more than 337 yards. In the first round he averaged a head-turning 349.4 yards. He’s one of 22 Web.com PING pros.
Japan Golf Tour
Last year’s breakout player, Chan Kim, renewed his contract. Kim won three times last year in Japan, where the 27-year-old Arizona State University alum was #1 in driving distance with his G400 LST driver at 314.24 yards. PING’s presence on the men’s JGTO is 11 players strong.
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