2024 last year Harbor Shores will host Senior PGA Championship

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. - Harbor Shores is nearing the end of an era as Southwest Michigan will lose its biggest sporting event after May of this year.

Whirlpool and PGA of America announcing KitchenAid is pulling out as the sponsor of the senior championship.

That means 2024 will be the last Senior PGA Championship at Harbor Shores in Benton Harbor.

The course has hosted the senior championship every other year since 2012, bringing international exposure and some of the most disguised names in Golf to Southwest Michigan.

The Golden Bear, golf legend, Jack Nicklaus sank a famous 102-foot putt on the course he designed, at Harbor Shores grand opening back in 2010.

Since then, through a partnership between KitchenAid and PGA of America, the course has been home to five senior championships, this May marking the sixth and final.

"PGA of America and Whirlpool have mutually decided that 2024 will be the last year of the KitchenAid sponsorship of our championship,” said Brandon Haney, Championship Director PGA of America.

Local golfers like Dustin Lester, co-owner of Pipestone Indoor Country Club in Benton Harbor, have seen the benefits of this event firsthand.

His facility hosted a longest drive competition for the PGA back in 2022, he shared his initial reaction to the news.

"Initially and honestly a little bummed... Obviously the exposure that the Senior PGA and the event brings here to the area... not just for business owners but the game of golf...is something that was very exciting. There was excitement in the area when the event was coming to town so definitely something we will miss,” said Lester.

The event takes more than a thousand volunteers to put on and has brought some of the most distinguished golfers in the world to Benton Harbor.

The exposure from the championship has served as a direct catalyst for growth in the area over the past 12 years.

"From the very beginning, that was one of our goals, to bring attention to this community and also to Harbor Shores. If you look at it, we started here in 2012, and there were a couple of hotels, and now it's probably quadrupled that, and Harbor Shores is a top 90 course,” said Deb O’Connor, Director of Community Relations for Whirlpool.

Whirlpool and PGA said there was no single factor that led to the mutual decision.

"It just ended up being we couldn't make the same impact anymore and make sure everybody could achieve their goals, so it was just time,” added O’Connor.

O'Connor added that the leading home appliance company is still committed to Benton Harbor.

"Whirlpool is going nowhere. We've been here 112 years, it’s just a matter of what are we going to do next,” O’Connor reassured.

Bittersweet news for Lester.

"I think overall, just great very grateful and thankful for the time it was here, and the things it did for the community,” he said.

The championship is less than 100 days away. PGA of America and Whirlpool say they plan to go out with a bang, making this the biggest and best championship yet.

With more announcements to come next week.