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Board approves amended PGA agreement requiring city cost reimbursement up to $1 million per tournament
Summary
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved an amendment to the master tournament agreement with the PGA Tour for events at Harding Park that guarantees the city reimbursement for direct costs up to $1 million per tournament; the First Tee program and private philanthropies remain involved in covering remaining costs.
Supervisor Ellsburn brought the ordinance amendment to the board and said the change ensures the city is reimbursed for direct costs tied to PGA tournaments at Harding Park. "The amendment in front of you now specifies that the city will receive full compensation for any direct cost it incurs for the tournament up to a million dollars," Supervisor Ellsburn said.
The amendment, described by Ellsburn as negotiated with the PGA and with First Tee, alters the previous arrangement that had contemplated $500,000 to the city and $500,000 to First Tee per event. Under the amendment, direct costs to the city would be compensated first up to $1 million; any remainder would go to First Tee, with philanthropic donors offering to cover potential shortfalls to the First Tee.
Why it matters: Harding Park is the city-owned golf course that hosts professional tournaments and has generated debate over operating deficits and economic benefit. Ellsburn argued the amendment was needed to keep tournaments at Harding Park and to help the golf fund recover. He cited both marketing opportunities and the need to be competitive in the regional golf market.
Board debate centered on financial oversight and analysis. Supervisor Juh moved to continue the item one week for review by the budget analyst (Harvey Rose), saying "I think... giving it to the budget analyst to have another week to review this would be prudent and transparent." The motion to continue failed for lack of a second. The board then voted on Ellsburn's amendment.
A roll-call vote recorded the measure as adopted "as amended" with nine ayes and one no. The transcript records the result only as a tally: "there are 9 ayes and 1 no." The record did not include a named breakdown of each member's vote in the excerpted roll call available in the transcript.
Budget and economic context: Board members noted prior studies and finances. Ellsburn and others referenced a University of Florida economic-impact study commissioned after the 2005 tournament that estimated roughly $31.5 million in local economic activity tied to a PGA event; the controller's office also provided estimates of hotel- and sales-tax effects depending on how many attendees stayed in city hotels. Supervisors pressed for assurances that philanthropic commitments to the First Tee would be honored and for follow-up reporting on actual city costs versus revenue.
Implementation notes: The amendment makes the city whole for documented direct costs up to $1,000,000 per tournament; it does not itself create an ongoing guarantee of broader operating subsidies to the golf fund. Supervisors asked staff to monitor private commitments to First Tee and to report further fiscal detail in follow-up communications.
Ending: With the amendment adopted, supporters said it clears the path to host future PGA events at Harding Park; critics urged monitoring and independent budget analysis going forward.
