2011 Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia to Feature Top Industry Names, World-Class Instructor Education, Product Demos Oct. 20-22

UPDATE: The 2011 Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show has officially opened.  Stay with PGA.com for photos and all the latest.

**********************

GUANGZHOU, China and PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -– Global industry leaders, including top PGA Professionals from around the world, will be gathering this week at the 2011 Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia, Oct. 20–22, at the Guangzhou Jinhan Exhibition Center, in Guangzhou, China. The event is organized by the China Golf Association, PGA World Alliance, Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) and the Golf Course Builders Association of America (GCBAA); and supported by Reed Guanghe Exhibitions, an affiliate of PGA Worldwide Golf Exhibitions. The show will include more than 100 exhibitors across 7,000 square meters of exhibition space (75,345 square feet) and the first-ever PGA Teaching & Coaching Summit-Asia.

Among the key global golf leaders who will be in attendance are: PGA of America CEO Joe Steranka; Rhett Evans, CEO, GCSAA; Sandy Jones, Chief Executive, The Professional Golfers' Association of Great Britain & Ireland; Brian Thorburn, CEO, PGA of Australia; and Justin Apel, Executive Director, GCBAA. More than 7,500 attendees are expected during the three-day event.

The Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia will showcase the latest innovations in the game to the worldwide golf industry. With the expansion of golf on a global scale, the PGA World Alliance will collaborate, support, assist and share expertise with new regions and emerging markets in the development of the game and business of golf, as well as help develop players to compete in the Olympic Games.

PING will exhibit on the show floor, along with top equipment companies and exhibitors, such as OMEGA, Jacobsen, Toro, Club Car and SkyCaddie. In addition, Demo Night attendees will be able to try out the latest products being offered on the market from Callaway, PING, TaylorMade, Titleist and other leading golf companies, on Oct. 20.

The first-ever PGA Teaching & Coaching Summit-Asia, presented by OMEGA is one of the Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia’s featured events. Based on the successful, biannual PGA Teaching & Coaching Summit conducted by The PGA of America, the event will showcase the expertise of the very best PGA teaching professionals, including featured keynote speaker Hank Haney, the 1993 PGA Teacher of the Year and a former golf instructor of Tiger Woods. The Summit will also highlight acclaimed Australian PGA Professionals Steve Bann, instructor for K.J. Choi, and Alan Huang, a teacher of many of China’s rising golf starts; as well as PGA Professionals Billy "William" Martin, who has worked with Jack Nicklaus, and JC Video President Mark Connell.

"The PGA Teaching & Coaching Summit is a great opportunity to gain further understanding and knowledge about how to coach golf and its natural connection to growing the game and developing players around Asia," said Dawes Marlatt, PGA Director of Education for The PGA of America. "It will be accessible for beginning coaches, as well as those who have many years of experience coaching players of all abilities. These presenters have proven success at every level, from beginners to major championship winners, and have always been willing to share their knowledge to help our professionals learn and improve. The PGA World Alliance and OMEGA are proud to invite them as headline speakers and to arrange this event alongside the Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia."

The Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia, the only golf show in South China to enjoy official support from the game's leading associations, is organized by the PGA World Alliance, the China Golf Association and Beijing Reed Guanghe Exhibition Co., Ltd. Beginning this year, the Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia will be held each fall in a rotating location in South China.

About the Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show-Asia
Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show Asia is an international learning, networking and trading platform held in the south China region where global, regional and local suppliers can effectively network with general managers, superintendents and top industry buyers from all of Asia in a highly interactive and business-conducive environment. Tied to a concurrent conference schedule supported by the PGA World Alliance the week of events brings the market leaders together to share market insights. It is simply the best place to learn, network and do business effectively with the right people in Asia's most dynamic markets. Asia Golf Show/PGA Merchandise Show will take place Oct. 20-22, 2011, at Guangzhou Jinhan Exhibition Center.

About The PGA of America
Celebrating its 95th year, The PGA of America has maintained a twofold mission of its founders: to establish and elevate the standards of the profession and to grow interest and participation in the game of golf.

By establishing and elevating the standards of the golf profession through world-class education, career services, marketing and research programs, The PGA enables its professionals to maximize their performance in their respective career paths and showcases them as experts in the game and in a multi-billion dollar golf industry.

By creating and delivering dramatic world-class championships and exciting and enjoyable promotions that are viewed as the best of their class in the golf industry, The PGA of America elevates the public's interest in the game, the desire to play more golf, and ensures accessibility to the game for everyone, everywhere. The PGA of America brand represents the very best in golf.

Contacts:
Abraham Summers
Reed Exhibitions
Tel: +86 10 5933 9498
abraham.summers@reedexpo.com.cn

Michael Abramowitz
The PGA of America
561/624-8458
mabramowitz@pgahq.com