Tiger Woods is Pawan Munjal’s Hero

Sept 16, 2014. Hero MotoCorp Ltd is title sponsor of World Challenge 2014. The 16th Hero World Challenge is scheduled between December 3-7, 2014 at Isleworth Golf & Country Club in Orlando, Florida, and will see 17 of the PGA Tour’s best players competing for a million dollar top prize. Co-sponsored by the PGA Tour, Hero World Challenge raises funds and awareness for Tiger Woods Foundation’s college-access programs and benefits Tavistock Foundation.

Pawan Munjal, Vice-Chairman & Managing Director, Hero MotoCorp Ltd, said, this sponsorship reflects the brand’s quickly expanding global footprint. Associated with the game in India for over two decades as title sponsor of Hero Indian Open for men and women, stepping on to the global golf platform with Hero World Challenge was only logical. The new development doesn’t only reflect love for the game, but also for Tiger Woods. Hero getting on board for the Hero World Challenge marks a beginning, and in time the relationship will get stronger.

Tiger Woods says the tournament is integral to his foundation since 1999, having raised $25 million for it, and local charities. Partnering with Tavistock Group makes the tournament an even stronger platform. Tiger Woods was excited to welcome Hero MotoCorp, a global brand as title sponsor for Hero World Challenge.

In 2013, the Tiger Woods Foundation announced the Hero World Challenge would relocate from Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, California, to Isleworth Golf & Country Club in Orlando, in partnership with the Tavistock Group, who previously hosted the successful Tavistock Cup.

“The Hero World Challenge features the strongest invitational field in golf,” Andrew Odenbach, vice president of sports ventures at Tavistock Group said. “We are honored to build on its strong history and welcome the players, sponsors and fans at Isleworth Golf & Country Club.”

The Hero World Challenge will continue to raise funds and awareness for the college-access programs of the Tiger Woods Foundation and will also benefit the Tavistock Foundation. The Tiger Woods Foundation provides educational opportunities for underserved youth nationwide, with the mission to break the cycle of poverty. Seven Tiger Woods Learning Centers nationwide offer STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) courses such as robotics and graphic design, while the Earl Woods Scholarship Program is an unyielding support system of mentors, funds and workshops to help send students to universities including Georgetown, USC, UC-Berkeley, UCLA and Harvard.

The Tavistock Foundation is dedicated to supporting communities in which the Tavistock Group has significant business interests, with a focus on funding education and medical research programs. In the last decade, the Tavistock Cup provided direct charitable contributions to Orlando Minority Youth Golf Association, First Tee and M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. The Foundation was also instrumental in the development of the Lake Nona Institute, and has contributed to Lake Nona Medical City partners, including Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute and the University of Central Florida.

In 2013, Zach Johnson forced a playoff with five-time Hero World Challenge champion Tiger Woods after he holed out a 58-yard shot from the drop zone on No. 18 at Sherwood Country Club. He then secured the victory when Woods lipped out a five-foot par putt on the playoff hole. The two dueled in 2011, when Johnson fell to Woods by one stroke. This year’s winner will join a prestigious list of past champions including Davis Love III (2000), Padraig Harrington (2002), Luke Donald (2005), Vijay Singh (2008), Jim Furyk (2009) and Graeme McDowell (2010, 2012).