How has the RSM Classic thrived for 15 years, in the PGA Tour’s smallest market?
Of course, it has the main attributes of a good golf tournament: historic, scenic courses at the Sea Island Resort Seaside and Plantation; a strong field for the FedEx Cup Fall anchor event; and the cachet of having World Golf Hall of Fame member Davis Love III as the tournament host.
But Love and his brother Mark, the tournament’s executive director, said there’s another key factor: consistency, starting with the only title sponsor the tournament has ever had, and a tournament staff, volunteer force and fan base that rarely changes from year to year.
Davis Love said it starts with RSM, which was named McGladrey when the tournament was first played in 2010. The 15th edition of the Classic will begin on Thursday, with Golf Channel airing play from Noon-3 p.m. in the first two rounds and 1-4 p.m. for the weekend rounds.
“I’ve seen sponsors come and go,” Love said. “It’s usually a five- or 10-year cycle. But here we are at 15 [years] and RSM wants more. They want to help us make it bigger and better for them, for the community and for charity. They’re not just a sponsor. They’re our friends and partners.”
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RSM volunteer base is fiercely loyal
Mark Love credited more than 1,200 volunteers, most from the Golden Isles but many who carve out vacation time to work at the tournament.
“The volunteer [registration] opens up and it gets flooded,” he said. “It’s tough for new people to break in because of the retention of the volunteers we’ve had for years.”
Both also gave props to a small but hard-working tournament staff, led by director of operations Tony Schuster, a veteran golf tournament director who has run Tour stops in Castle Pines, Charlotte, the Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia, and tournament director Todd Thompson.
“We wouldn’t be where we are if it were not for Tony,” Davis Love said. “We stole him from Johnny Harris [the President of the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte] and Johnny stole him from Castle Pines. Todd Thompson is one of the best in the business. Mark and I know what a great tournament looks like but someone has to execute.”
Tournament staff also includes family
The staff also includes the two brothers and Davis Love’s daughter Lexie Whatley, the director of merchandise. You will also find Love’s 10-year-old granddaughter Eloise helping out in the merchandise tent.
“She thinks she’s the boss of the merchandise tent,” Love said. “Mark and I got started when we were kids, helping our parents with the PGA Tour events and the first Players Championship at the Atlanta Country Club and now we’re on our fourth generation involved in running golf tournaments.”
That’s what you call generational.
PGA Tour: Sea Island hosts final event of 2024
Event: RSM Classic, Thursday-Sunday, Sea Island Club Seaside and Plantation Courses, St. Simons Island, Ga.
What’s the purse? $7.6 million ($1,362 million and 500 FedEx Cup points to the winner.
Who won last year? Ludvig Aberg shot 61-61 on the weekend and won by four shots, tying the Tour’s record score of 253 for a 72-hole event.
How to watch on TV: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 12-3 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 1-4 p.m.).
Area players entered: Tyson Alexander, Jonathan Byrd, Bud Cauley, Adrien Dumont de Chassart, Nico Echavarria, Harris English, Ben Griffin, Lanto Griffin, Brian Harman, Zach Johnson, Patton Kizzire, Philip Knowles, Russell Knox, Ben Kohles, Davis Love III, Ketih Mitchell, Raul Pereda, J.T. Poston, Sam Ryder, Greyson Sigg, Davis Thompson, Tim Wilkinson, Carl Yuan.
Notable: Aberg, who earned his card through PGA Tour University, won on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour as a rookie. … Also playing are major champions Lucas Glover, Stewart Cink, Gary Woodland and Francesco Molinari. … The Tour will be off for six weeks until The Sentry, in Maui, Hawaii, Jan. 2-5.
LPGA Tour: Season ends in Naples
Event: CME Group Tour Championship, Thursday-Sunday, Tiburon Golf Club, Naples.
What’s the purse? $11 million ($4 million to the winner).
Who won last year? Amy Yang shot in the 60s in all four rounds for the first time in the tournament’s history with middle rounds of 63-64, and finished with a record 27-under to beat Alison Lee and Nasa Hatoaka by three shots.
How to watch on TV: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 3-5 p.m.; Saturday, 4-7 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.).
Area players entered: None.
Notable: The top 60 players on the final season-long points list qualified for the tournament. Points are reset and all players have a chance to win the $1 million bonus. … Nelly Korda, last week’s winner at The Annika, is first on the points list, followed by Haeran Ryu, Lydia Ko, Ayaka Furue and Ruoning Yin.
What are the (golf) odds?
RSM Classic: Hard Rock Bet has established Aberg as the clear favorite, +900. The next-best odds are two St. Simons Island, Ga., residents, Brian Harman and Davis Thompson, plus 2017 Players champion Si Woo Kim, all at +2250.
CME Group Tour Championship: Last week’s winner and world No. 1-ranked Nelly Korda is +550 by Hard Rock, followed by Jeeno Thitikul (+850) and Lydia Ko (+1200).
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: RSM Classic has thrived despite being in PGA Tour’s smallest market
