Fort Smith Classic set to return to Hardscrabble in 2010

The board of The Fort Smith Classic, a Nationwide tour tournament that is a PGA Tour-sanctioned event, voted Thursday (Aug. 27) to keep the tournament at Hardscrabble Country Club — but the vote requires the region to financially support the event more than in past years.

Patricia Brown, executive director of the Fort Smith Classic, told The City Wire late Thursday that the Classic must raise about $250,000 to ensure the professional golf tournament continues to play in Fort Smith. Brown said an economic impact study found that about 20,000 people attended the 2009 tournament-week activities, and the event generated a roughly $5 million return to the region. She said PGA Tour officials suggested the impact might be as high as $8 million.

Brown said officials with Little Rock-based Stephens Inc. privately told the board during the May 2009 event that they would not continue with a $225,000 presenting sponsorship in 2010. But Brown was quick to note that the Stephens decision was reasonable, and followed three years of generous support.

“They (Stephens) were kind to come in and keep the organization afloat after Rheem’s departure (as title sponsor) in 2006,” Brown explained. “They supported us heavily through 2009, and will continue to provide some support, but not at that ($225,000) level. … I think Stephens thought it was just time to allow the community to step up and take ownership.”

Brown said the 11-member Classic board has spent the past six weeks determining if regional business and civic leaders are interested in keeping the PGA event in Fort Smith. Although some people didn’t think it was worth the effort, Brown said the “overwhelming response” was that the event was important to the region in terms of prestige and “providing a quality of place element” in the region.

Tentative financial commitments presented at Thursday’s board meeting were short of the necessary amount, however.

“The math indicates we’re not there but we are making great strides. … But the board is stepping out there with faith that the Fort Smith area will step forward and help make it happen,” Brown explained. “We have about 18 months to get this right.”

The annual tour budget is about $850,000, with that covering the $225,000 purse, $65,000 to Hardscrabble Country Club and about $100,000 that is donated to local charities.

Brown said the PGA Tour has approved the event for 2010 — which will be the 13th consecutive year the event has been in Fort Smith — and the Hardscrabble Country Club board of director has approved a letter of intent to allow the Classic to use the course in 2010. The 2010 tournament is “penciled in” to begin June 21.

“But that could change,” Brown said.

Brown said she is confident the “can-do, active board” of the Classic will find financial security for the event. A group called “The Classic Keepers” has been formed, with Butch Edwards as chairman and Joe Dickinson, Billy Dooly, Chuck Fawcett and Bennie Westphal as the founding members. Brown said many tournaments have similar groups that raise money and keep tournaments financially sound for several years in advance. Members of such groups “get special perks and privileges” during the planning of the event and during the tournament week, she said.

“We are in a critical phase of this tournament. We can either grow it and make it solid, or we’ll look up in a year and we’ll not be any more stable than we are now,” Brown said.