• by David Kaplan , April 4, 2005

Golf Connoisseur magazine launches itself this spring with an ebullient "Fore!," as it is probably one of the few publications to unveil itself by sponsoring a major event: the magazine is serving as the title sponsor of the MS Spring Golf Classic, a long-running benefit that traditionally kicks off the golf charity season.

The Classic, which is in its 31st year, will be held May 2 at Ridgewood Country Club in Ridgewood, NJ. As for the reason the magazine chose this event to have its official tee-off?

"This event is a premier invite for high-level print media decision makers, so Golf Connoisseur figures it can make a concentrated impression in a symbiotic environment," a spokesman for the magazine said. "This is the first time, to my knowledge, that a magazine has been title sponsor to introduce itself to the media planning community."

The event's history began with the advertising community. Paul Zuckerman, then director of print media planning at DDB, is the one who first conceived the Classic as a magazine event. It now draws support from TV, Internet, radio, and newspapers as well, and has become the MS Society of New Jersey's largest fund-raiser, according to Golf Connoisseur's spokesman.