We are thrilled to announce our OnCore Gateway Tour has united with the Golden State Tour to create the largest development tour on the West Coast. Full Press Release below.
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (September 21, 2015) – The OnCore Gateway Tour (OGT), recently rebranded from the All-American Gateway Tour (AAGT), and the Golden State Tour (GST) have announced they are combining forces to create the largest developmental pro golf tour on the West Coast.
The union of these tours has been in the works since 2013 when the All-American Tour and Gateway Pro Tour joined together in an effort to consolidate the number of developmental tours in operation to create a stronger, more impactful tour for both the players and the industry at large. After these tours merged, the focus of AAGT continued to be one of helping to reduce the fragmentation of the players and improve field sizes so that players had a better environment to fine tune their professional golf skills.
“Over the years we have created multiple partnerships, secured sponsors, launched new programs, and pursued acquisitions all in an effort to create a more stable developmental tour circuit that could truly provide standards in line with the PGA Tour,” said OnCore Gateway Tour owner Dusty Dean. “Our number one commitment has always been to offer an environment that mirrors what players can expect if they reach their ultimate goal of a career in professional golf.”
“From conducting player meetings to reaching out to the other tours time and time again, to even launching different programs and partnerships that we believed would create larger fields, bigger purses, and more developmental opportunities for the players, our goal has always been to have a tour that was not player funded but instead built on ancillary income that benefited everyone. Some of these efforts paid off while others did not like our latest endeavor with an East Coast tour,” shared Dean. “While that partnership did not produce the nationwide tour we had envisioned, it did set the stage for our introduction into the East. And now with our union with the Golden State Tour and exciting new title sponsorship with OnCore Golf, we have solidified ourselves as the only major tour in the West. This has positioned us well for both additional national sponsorships and further expansion into other key markets.”
From day one, the newly branded OnCore Gateway Tour has stayed true to their course of finding partners with their same mindset of delivering the professional standards players deserve. The union with GST is evidence of that commitment and with Arizona and California being large hubs for professional golfers, players can benefit from high quality events by the one tour with the most impressive history of all the developmental tours operating today.
Since its inception in 2001 under the name of the Gateway Tour, the most well-known and established tour in the developmental golf industry, the OnCore Gateway Tour has served over 4,000 players, paid out over $44 million in purses, and boasts an impressive number of 168 alumni currently playing on the PGA and Web.com Tours, representing 32 PGA Tour wins and 78 Web.com Tour wins.
The Golden State Tour is the longest running developmental golf tour in the country. Since 1982, the tour has consistently provided aspiring professional golfers a year round, competitive environment in California and other areas on the West Coast. Thousands of talented professionals have jump started their careers while competing on the GST over the years.
“We are excited to be a part of the consolidation effort with the OnCore Gateway Tour and look forward to the new offerings we will now be able to extend to our players thanks to this venture,” said GST Executive Director Michael O’Leary. “For the last 33 years, the Golden State Tour has been dedicated to the overall development of professional golfers, helping our players take their game to the next level while earning a living and supporting charitable causes. Combining forces with the OnCore Gateway Tour is the logical next step in our tour’s history.”
Membership and tournament registration recently opened for all three of the OnCore Gateway Tour’s series, which represents one schedule for both tours. Tournament entry fees range from as low as $950 to $1,150 per tournament, based on which membership level is selected. Non-members are able to participate for an entry fee of $1,450 per tournament.
“We remain committed to the concept of player and staff development and not the current player funded tour structure that continues to run rampant today,” said Dean. “Our upcoming Fall, Winter, and Spring Series, which has a slate of eighteen 54-hole tournaments, runs from September through April. It offers players more flexibility than ever before and even has a free membership offer. Now that we have one united schedule for the West Coast, I am confident we will have the ability to bring in more sponsorships and supporting programs that will further strengthen our tour and give our players opportunities that no other developmental tour can offer.”
For more information about the OnCore Gateway Tour and its membership offerings and upcoming schedule, please visitOnCoreGatewayTour.com.
About OnCore Gateway Tour (OGT)
Established in 2001, the OnCore Gateway Tour (OGT), newly branded from the All-American Gateway Tour (AAGT), was created to help aspiring PGA TOUR professionals fine-tune their skills in competitive golf tournaments. In its 14-year history, the tour has maintained a leading position as the premier developmental professional golf tour on the West Coast and has paid out more than $44 million to players over that period. OGT has served more than 4,000 players, with 168 AAGT alums currently playing on the Web.com and PGA Tours. These players represent 32 PGA Tour wins and 78 Web.com Tour wins. Today, OGT continues to provide the ideal competitive environment as well as significant financial opportunities for aspiring PGA TOUR andWeb.com Tour professionals. For more information on sponsorship opportunities or information for the 2015-2016 season, please visit OnCoreGatewayTour.com. You can also follow the tour on Twitter at twitter.com/AAGTGOLF or like them on Facebook at facebook.com/AAGTProGolf.