Deutsche Bank golf tournament sponsor says investment good for charities, local economy

Deutsche Bank tourney sponsor defends investment

BOSTON — Defending the bank’s sponsorship of a golf tournament in a slumping economy, Deutsche Bank Americas CEO Seth Waugh said Wednesday that the event has been a good investment for the company while providing needed money for the charities and local businesses that depend upon it.

“You can think of the golf tournament as a silly little thing in terms of what’s going on in the world, but these are the bricks that can build the economy back up,” Waugh said, citing studies that estimate the economic impact of the Deutsche Bank Championship at $40 million to $70 million annually. “Nobody in the world’s going to want to take 70 million less.”

Speaking to leaders of Boston businesses and charities at the Four Seasons Hotel, Waugh bristled at complaints that Northern Trust, a recipient of more than $1.5 billion in federal bailout funds, was wining and dining clients and employees at a February tournament it sponsors in Los Angeles.

Among the critics was Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. Frank’s district includes the TPC Boston course in Norton, where the Deutsche Bank Championship is held. Frank and other members of his committee wrote to Northern Trust CEO Frederick H. Waddell to demand that the bank reimburse the federal government for taxpayer money spent on “lavish events” in conjunction with the Northern Trust Open.

“Six months ago, it was at a fever pitch. That was too bad. It’s calmed down,” Waugh said, stressing that Deutsche Bank did not take any federal bailout money. “Northern Trust was in the crosshairs. (It was) being treated unfairly. It really boiled down to the fact that Sheryl Crow was singing.”

The Labor Day weekend stop on the PGA tour, the Deutsche Bank Championship has become one of the more prestigious tournaments on the calendar — thanks largely to its association with Tiger Woods. Woods, who won the event in 2006 and finished second twice, is involved in running the tournament, and his foundation is its primary charitable beneficiary.

The tournament gave $3.5 million to charities last year and $14 million since it began in 2003.

“When you delve into the what golf does for the charities and the community impact for the local economies, I don’t think it would be too beneficial to see that go,” said Mark Steinberg, who runs the golf division at IMG and is Woods’ agent. “I think that the numbers speak for the benefit.”