Written by: Brian Eaton

While the game of golf has long withstood the test of time, and is steeped in history and tradition, it is also uniquely positioned for innovation. It is one of the reasons Cisco is investing in the sport. We aren’t trying to change the game of golf, we’re trying to apply Cisco solutions to simplify and enhance the overall experience of how fans consume the game, especially on site at tournaments.

Imagine being able to find your favorite golfer, anytime, anywhere, on the course, and have continually updated statistics on his or her performance through the new wayfinding in an app. Or watching player after player warm up on the practice range with advanced statistics and data displayed right there in real-time through a dynamic content delivery system. Or having access to enhanced media coverage thanks to live interviews with journalists around the world. 

During our first year as the Official Technology Partner of the United States Golf Association (USGA), Cisco did all that and more. And now, we are starting off our second year in golf by announcing partnerships with six professional golfers on the PGA TOUR and LPGA Tour to serve as global brand ambassadors. These talented individuals are all incredible representatives for our company, as they all share our commitment and vision for growing the game and inspiring a new generation of golf fans and players through innovation and technology.

See also: Cisco announces new global partnership to become official technology partner of City Football Group 

Chez Reavie, Keith Mitchell, Viktor Hovland, Danielle Kang, Nelly Korda and Jessica Korda join current ambassador and PGA TOUR rookie Maverick McNealy to comprise one of the largest and most diverse rosters of brand ambassadors in the sport. Here is a little bit about each of them: 

• Reavie is coming off strong 2019 season with one PGA TOUR victory – at the Travelers Championship – and advanced to the FedExCup Playoffs.
• Mitchell won the 2019 Honda Classic and also advanced to the FedExCup Playoffs last season.
• Hovland built on his performances as low amateur at both the Masters Tournament and the U.S. Open this past year to power him to a full PGA TOUR card for the new season.
• Kang is currently ranked No. 4 in the Rolex World Golf Rankings and won the Buick LPGA Shanghai for the second straight year in 2019.
• Nelly Korda is currently the third-ranked golfer in the Rolex World Golf Rankings after a break-out 2019 season that included two of her three career victories.
• Jessica Korda continues to be a stalwart on the LPGA Tour, where she has collected five titles and seven top ten finishes in majors throughout her career.

The partnerships with these golfers build not only on Cisco’s involvement with the game of golf, but also our commitment to supporting promising and diverse athletes from around the world across various sports as they strive to achieve their dreams. Ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Cisco is supporting several Japanese athletes who will represent their home country at the Games this summer:

• Twenty-six-year-old Kasumi Ishikawa has been the face of table tennis in Japan since she was a teenager and is one of the most decorated Japanese table tennis athletes ever.
• Sixteen-year-old Tomokazu Harimoto is one of the most promising and fast-rising table tennis athletes in the world and will look to make a run at Japan's first-ever individual Olympic medal when the Games come to his home country this summer.
• Paralympian Tomoki Sato will compete in the Wheelchair 400m and 1500m events in Tokyo
• Tomoki Ikoma is a two-time Paralympic medalist, having won two silver medals at the 2016 Rio Games. The world record-holder competes in the Wheelchair 100m and Universal Relay events.
• Three-time Paralympian Hitoshi Masunaga competed at Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016, and hopes to represent his country once again at the Tokyo Games next summer.

I hope you will join me in following and supporting all our talented athlete ambassadors as they pursue their dreams and wear the Cisco logo with pride. Go Team Cisco!