Nck Taylor鈥檚 epic putt to win the RBC Canadian Open this summer was already iconic.
Now the moment has been incorporated into an icon.
Golf Canada, title sponsor RBC, and tournament organizers announced Friday a tweak to the event鈥檚 logo for 2024, featuring Taylor鈥檚 silhouette 鈥 a design that initially started as an entrant into a pumpkin-carving contest this Halloween.
Golf Canada鈥檚 chief marketing officer Tim McLaughlin said the organization鈥檚 graphic designer, Brendan Peters, was asked by tournament director Bryan Crawford for help to design something for Ancaster, Ont.鈥檚 The Great Pumpkin Stroll. That was the first time the replacement logo featured Taylor.
鈥淗e made an amazing pumpkin that featured that design, and it was sort of a one-off and we were sitting around thinking, 鈥榃ow that鈥檚 a really cool pumpkin,鈥欌 McLaughlin said. 鈥淏ut we sat back, and we were like, 鈥榃ait a second, what you鈥檝e done here is really special and maybe there鈥檚 an opportunity to lean into it more.'"
From there, Golf Canada started to explore the idea of potentially using Taylor鈥檚 putter flip as part of the 鈥渃ore brand identity鈥 for the 2024 RBC Canadian Open and pay tribute to Taylor鈥檚 special win.
Taylor, of Abbotsford, B.C., defeated England鈥檚 Tommy Fleetwood on the fourth playoff hole at Oakdale Golf and Country Club with a 72-foot eagle 鈥 the longest putt Taylor had made in his PGA Tour career.
He was the first Canadian in 69 years to win the men鈥檚 national open championship.
The previous logo had an old-school golfer wearing a newsboy cap replacing the "I" in "Canadian." Taylor鈥檚 putter-drop image is now in its place.
The Golf Canada team quickly engaged the PGA Tour to advise them of their idea for tweaking the logo and McLaughlin said the Tour, and its social media team especially, loved the opportunity to build more hype heading into next year.
Golf Canada also worked closely with Taylor and his agent, Jordan Snowie of Wasserman, since the early brainstorming stages.
McLaughlin said Taylor, a three-time PGA Tour winner, was 鈥渟uper excited鈥 to see the end result.
鈥淭o be a part of the 2024 RBC Canadian Open logo is really special,鈥 said Taylor in a release. 鈥淲hen I first saw the re-design with myself as the swing man, I was flattered by the tribute and thought it was very cool. I am excited to get to Hamilton and looking forward to defending my title.鈥
While the logo itself is just a static update 鈥 and will be featured prominently at every touch point next year including marketing, branding, and likely merchandise 鈥 Friday鈥檚 launch also included an animated video that transitioned the old logo to the new one.
Axle Films, based in Windsor, Ont. and one of Golf Canada鈥檚 marketing partners, was responsible for the animation. It also featured the audio of broadcaster Mark Zecchino鈥檚 heroic call of the winning putt for PGA Tour Radio.
鈥淲hen the logo turned in to an animation, we knew that audio needed to be part of it,鈥 McLaughlin said. 鈥淢ark鈥檚 call was so special, and I think as a Canadian it evokes such amazing feelings of excitement and pride.鈥
So, while the genesis of the idea was a pumpkin design, McLaughlin knew there was an opportunity carve out something special for next year 鈥 especially after such a thrilling finish this year.
鈥淲e thought strategically it was an amazing way to honour such a special moment to make it feel uniquely Canadian and bring some energy and fun to the logo which would be additive to the core brand of the event,鈥 he said.
The 2024 RBC Canadian Open takes place May 28 to June 2 at the Hamilton Golf and Country Club in Hamilton, Ont.
This report by 香港六合彩挂牌资料 was first published Dec. 1, 2023.
