MetLife MatchUp Swings into Year Two with $1 Million for Charity and a Consumer Sweepstakes

Voting fans are entered to win a replica of the 2018 MetLife MatchUp Champion’s clubs

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla.--()--Nerves of steel, a shrewd strategy, and a hunger to win. That’s what viewers can expect to see from the players navigating difficult shots on the PGA TOUR this season. Aces and albatrosses aside, only the most complicated yet impressive shots will be selected for this year’s season-long MetLife MatchUp, a weekly competition between the two players who most successfully navigate tough situations on the course, in order to earn the chance to win a million dollars for charity.

New this year is a consumer sweepstakes where voting fans from the U.S., Canada, and the U.K., automatically qualify for a chance to win a replica of the 2018 MetLife MatchUp champion’s clubs. Each vote counts as a separate entry so the more fans vote throughout the season, the more they increase their odds of winning. To learn more about the sweepstakes, visit PGATOUR.com/MetLife.

Bubba Watson, winner of the inaugural 2017 MetLife MatchUp, tapped his robust social media clout to encourage his fans to vote for him after promising to donate the prize money to charity.

“My fans are really the ones who made this happen and I can't thank them enough for voting,” said Watson. “They made it possible for me to give back to the Pensacola community in a very significant way, which is an even bigger win in my book. As promised, the million-dollar prize is being used to further two causes that are close to my heart, our local children's hospital and junior golf efforts in the area. I am already looking forward to the 2018 MetLife MatchUp and I aim to qualify for the chance to compete again.”

The MetLife MatchUp identifies the two most impressive shots from 13 select PGA TOUR events throughout the season. Players are chosen based on who successfully navigates a challenging course situation and fans are then invited to vote for their favorite maneuver on PGATOUR.COM/MetLife. Each week, a player is crowned, scores $20,000 for his charity of choice, and advances to the year-end finale. The contest culminates with fans selecting a grand prize winner who will ultimately receive $750,000 for his chosen charity.

“Last year we saw how difficult – and rewarding – navigating the twists and turns of golf can be,” said Richard Hong, SVP, Global Integrated Marketing, MetLife. “We were thrilled to see the [MetLife] MatchUp’s online engagement flourish with both fans and players.”

“The MetLife MatchUp was such a success in its inaugural year, allowing us to engage even more with fans via our telecast and digital platforms so we are excited to expand the program this year to include more tournaments,” said Brian Oliver, PGA TOUR, Executive Vice President of Corporate Partnerships. “Bubba Watson’s win in 2017 was a fitting end to the program’s inaugural season and for Bubba to donate 100% of the proceeds to charities in Pensacola is another example of his generosity and the impact our players continually make with the help of great partners like MetLife.”

The MetLife MatchUp will kick-off in 2018 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale. For more information and to vote throughout the season, please visit PGATOUR.COM/MetLife.

About MetLife MatchUp

The MetLife MatchUp is the driver of MetLife’s Official Marketing Partnership with the PGA TOUR that runs through 2020. As the Official Life Insurance Company of the PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions” since 2013, MetLife added a second category in 2017 of “Official Worksite Benefits Sponsor of the PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions.”

The 13 events included in the MetLife MatchUp include: Waste Management Phoenix Open, AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Genesis Open, RBC Heritage, Valero Texas Open, Wells Fargo Championship, AT&T Byron Nelson, DEAN & DELUCA Invitational, FedEx St. Jude Classic, The National, The Greenbrier Classic, John Deere Classic and the RBC Canadian Open.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates (“MetLife”), is one of the world’s leading financial services companies, providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management to help its individual and institutional customers navigate their changing world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40 countries and holds leading market positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.metlife.com.About.

About PGA TOUR

The PGA TOUR is the leading global platform in professional golf, showcasing the highest expression of excellence, both on and off the course. The PGA TOUR’s mission is to entertain and inspire its fans, deliver substantial value to its partners, create outlets for volunteers to give back, generate significant charitable and economic impact in the communities in which it plays, grow and protect the game of golf and provide financial opportunities for TOUR players.

The PGA TOUR co-sanctions more than 130 tournaments on the PGA TOUR, PGA TOUR Champions, Web.com Tour, PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR-China. Members on the PGA TOUR represent the world’s best players, hailing from 25 countries (84 members are from outside the United States). Worldwide, PGA TOUR tournaments are broadcast to more than 1 billion households in 226 countries and territories in 23 languages. Virtually all tournaments are organized as non-profit organizations in order to maximize charitable giving. In 2017, tournaments across all Tours generated a record of more than $180 million for local and national charitable organizations, bringing the all-time total to $2.65 billion.

The PGA TOUR's web site is PGATOUR.COM, the No. 1 site in golf, and the organization is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

Contacts

MetLife
Mansura Ghaffar
mansura.ghaffar@metlife.com
or
PGA TOUR
Mark Stevens, 904-861-5112
markstevens@pgatourhq.com

Contacts

MetLife
Mansura Ghaffar
mansura.ghaffar@metlife.com
or
PGA TOUR
Mark Stevens, 904-861-5112
markstevens@pgatourhq.com