LA QUINTA, Calif., Jan. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- As coincidence may have it, while Bob Kahan is talking about his successful past sponsoring players in The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course, a timely e-mail enters his inbox.

"How do you like this?" Kahan said. "I'm getting an e-mail from Kevin Streelman right now, as we speak."

Kahan, a retired partner with Montgomery Securities, a San Francisco-based brokerage firm, is a member of the conglomerate that won $1 million-plus sponsoring 2007 Ultimate Game champion Scott Piercy and fourth-place finisher Streelman, now a Q-School graduate. He also sponsored Piercy when he partnered with now PGA TOUR winner Eric Axley in the 2005 event.

Kahan and his group are probably the most successful snapshot of the many sponsors behind players in The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course. In the unique event, which will be televised over four hours of primetime coverage on GOLF CHANNEL March 10-11, two-person teams play for a $2.4 million total purse -- $1 million to the winning team -- composed wholly of their own $60,000 entry fees (per team). Because many of the players in the event are mini-touring pros who haven't quite gained the exposure -- and income -- synonymous with a PGA TOUR career, they often turn to sponsors to pay their way in.

But, if you ask Kahan, it's not just a sound financial investment, despite the fact that in this year's event, teams winning just two matches win their entry fees back, with multiple chances to earn much more.

"We're all one big family now," he said of the players he now calls his 'guys.' "And we obviously never would have met if it weren't for this tournament."

Axley, Piercy and Streelman still keep in close touch with Kahan, and Streelman invited Kahan to his wedding next year. And although his "guys" are ineligible this year -- Streelman and Axley are now on the PGA TOUR, and Piercy will play the Nationwide Tour -- Kahan and his cohorts are back again for another go-around -- they've purchased two teams in this year's event, to be played March 6-11 at La Quinta Resort & Club's The Stadium Golf Course at PGA WEST(R) in La Quinta, Calif. They wouldn't miss it.

"We go to a lot of events -- I've been to four or five Masters, and I've been to Final Fours, and I've been to All-Star Games and the World Series," Kahan said. "We go to a lot of big events, and this ranks up there with any one of them as the most exciting time.

"I can honestly say that it is the most fun I've ever had on a golf course, even when I've been playing myself. And last year's experience was just extraordinary. Everybody in our group had just an amazing time. Everybody is back again this year and wants to participate even though we don't even know who we're going to have.

"If you love golf, and if you love competition, it's an event you shouldn't miss."

**For information on sponsoring a player in The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course, visit http://www.theultimategame.com or call Mike McGovern at 1-888-996-6244.**

In 2008's The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course, 64 two-person teams will compete in a match-play format. The entry fee is $22,500 per player ($45,000 per team) until Nov. 30, $25,000 per player ($50,000 per team) from Dec. 1-31 and $30,000 per player ($60,000 per team) after Dec. 31. Players win their entry fees back if they win only two matches. Players win $25,000 for each additional victory after the first two. The winning team wins $1 million. There will also be a consolation bracket for teams that lose early, enabling them to win back their entry fees and more. (For a breakdown of the entire tournament format, go to http://www.theultimategame.com.)

Last year, on the back nine of the final round, it looked like both Kahan and Co.'s horses were out of the race.

"Oh, it was very, very tense," Kahan recalls. "We were pretty far behind -- we were three shots out of the lead on 12 -- when Scott went on a birdie tear."

Piercy birdied five of the final seven holes to overtake fellow Las Vegan Ken Jarner and win by three shots. It was a six-stroke turnaround, and when the final putt dropped, Piercy earned himself and his backers the biggest payday in golf history.

"Total jubilation," Kahan said, describing the mood. "Everybody was absolutely thrilled. It was one of the greatest thrills in sports that any of us have ever had."

Streelman, who finished fourth, six strokes back, also earned an unexpected payday when the final round concluded. Kahan and his group gave Streelman a $25,000 bonus for the way he conducted himself during the tournament.

"We felt he played so hard, and he played so well, and he was such a good sport all the way through, we wanted to give him a little something extra," Kahan said.

"He actually cried when we told him about it. Tears came down his cheeks."

The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course is open to all players, amateur or professional, men or women, of any age except:

    a.  Players who have had fully exempt status on the PGA Tour, the
        Nationwide Tour, the Champions Tour, the European Tour, the European
        Challenge Tour, the Japan Tour, or the Asian Tour ("Major Tours") at
        any time after March 3, 2002;
    b.  Players who have played in more than five "Major Tour" events at any
        time after March 3, 2007; and
    c.  Players who have ever won a "Major Tour" event.

Revered for its brash beauty and intriguing design, The PGA West Stadium Course has played host to the LG SKINS Game. Nine of the holes have water very much in play -- a Dye trademark -- and nearly every hole displays Dye's tremendous bunkering. This is especially true on No. 16, a 571-yard par 5, where the massive greenside bunker, complete with stairs, sits 18 feet below the level of the green. And who could forget "Alcatraz," a par-3 island-like green that hosted Lee Trevino's ultra-famous SKINS Game hole-in-one. Still the only hole-in-one in Skins Game history, the swing pocketed Trevino $1,140,000, prompting Ed Sherman of the Chicago Tribune to dub it, "the richest swing in golf history."

The PGA West Stadium Course has also hosted the PGA TOUR's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf, PGA Grand Slam of Golf and PGA TOUR Qualifying School Finals multiple times.

GOLF CHANNEL, which began its 15-year relationship as the exclusive cable provider of the PGA TOUR this year, has grown to become one of golf fans' best resources for following all levels of the game of golf. The network reaches 76 million American homes and more than 110 million around the world.

The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course is also adding a series of play-in tournaments, including one in Europe, Feb. 5-8, 2008, at the San Roque Golf Club in Spain. Dates and places for play-in tournaments in the United States with an entry fee of $10,000 will be announced in the near future. Winning two matches earns the entry fee back, and winning just three matches ensures a place in The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course.

ABOUT LA QUINTA RESORT & CLUB(R)

Recently celebrating their 80th anniversary, La Quinta Resort & Club, part of The Waldorf=Astoria Collection, is a legendary resort destination that has reigned over the picturesque Palm Springs area in the city of La Quinta with grace and charm since 1926. The Hollywood hideaway is located in a spectacular setting among orange and lemon groves at the base of the majestic Santa Rosa Mountains. Guests enjoy relaxing guest rooms and suites each enhanced by a Camas De Suenos (Bed of Dreams) and new 37" flat panel television, five of nine championship golf courses at the resort and PGA West; 23 tennis courts; the 23,000-square-foot Spa La Quinta(R), 41 pools and 53 hot spas; exceptional cuisine at AZUR, the new AZUR Sushi Bar by NO-DA-TE, Adobe Grill and TWENTY6; and The Plaza -- two stories of shops and restaurants surrounded by flowers, waterfalls and winding paths. Many consider this a home away from home with all the comforts and modern conveniences, including high-speed Internet access and wireless Internet service throughout ballrooms, pools, cabanas and some of its public areas. La Quinta Resort & Club is located at 49-499 Eisenhower Drive, La Quinta, California 92253. For further information and reservations, call 800.598.3828 or http://www.laquintaresort.com.

ABOUT PGA WEST(R)

PGA West is a spectacular master-planned country club community, established in 1984, located in beautiful La Quinta, just minutes from Palm Springs, California. PGA West is a recreational/resort development consisting of more than 2,200 acres featuring world-class golf, tennis and fitness. PGA West currently hosts six incredible golf courses, including the new Greg Norman Course. Residents enjoy three expansive clubhouses, a health and racquet club, as well as plenty of social activities. The Club at PGA West was opened for membership in 1985, and the enthusiasm of the members was evident even before the first golf course was opened in early 1986. PGA West has earned its title as "The Western Home of Golf in America"(R) by hosting many important tournaments, including players from the PGA TOUR, Senior PGA Tour, LPGA, and NCAA. One of the most famous shots in golf history occurred at the Stadium Golf Course, when Lee Trevino made a hole-in-one at number 17, "Alcatraz," during the 1988 Skins Game. Not to mention David Duval's amazing eagle on the 18th of the Arnold Palmer Private course to win the 1999 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic with a record breaking 59 strokes. The Club at PGA West is located at 55-955 PGA Boulevard, La Quinta, California 92253. For more information, call 800 or 760.564.7111.

ABOUT GOLF CHANNEL

GOLF CHANNEL (http://www.GolfChannel.com), co-founded by Arnold Palmer and a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) , is available in more than 110 million homes worldwide through cable, satellite and wireless companies. It features a programming schedule that includes more live golf coverage than all other networks combined, as well as news, instruction and original productions, such as the popular "Big Break." GOLF CHANNEL became the exclusive cable home of the PGA TOUR in 2007, and will televise part or all of every PGA TOUR event. In addition, the network is exclusive television home of the Nationwide Tour, European Tour and Canadian Tour, and the exclusive cable home of the Champions Tour. Also featured is a generous mix of other competition from the LPGA Tour, USGA, PGA of America, PGA Tour of Australasia and Sunshine Tour of Southern Africa.

ABOUT THE ULTIMATE GAME AT THE PGA WEST(R) STADIUM COURSE

The concept for what is now The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course was born more than 10 years ago. All-Pro NFL quarterback Steve Bartkowski and friends were watching a PGA TOUR event in which one of the pros appeared pressured to sink a six-foot putt: "That's not pressure. If he finishes second, who cares? His money isn't on the line. Pressure is when you have to sink a six-footer to win a $100 Nassau, and it's your $100," Bartkowski's friend said. From there, the concept of golfers playing for their own money was born. In 2005, the first Big Stakes Match Play was played in Mesquite, Nev. as a team event, where pros Garth Mulroy and David Ping won a $3 million first-place check. In 2007, it then became an individual event called The Ultimate Game at Wynn Las Vegas, where pro Scott Piercy won an unprecedented $2 million first prize. In 2008, The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course has returned to match play, with teams playing for a first-place prize of $1 million.

The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course is co-owned by Bartkowski and Jim Thomas, an attorney and partner with the Atlanta law firm McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP. As head of the firm's Sports and Entertainment Team, Thomas has represented Bartkowski, LPGA golfer Jan Stephenson, and for nearly 10 years, has served as Evander Holyfield's general counsel and boxing management adviser. Following an All-American college career in both baseball and football, Bartkowski was the first draft choice in the 1975 NFL draft. In 11 seasons as the Atlanta Falcons starter, he was the NFL's highest-rated quarterback three times, earned All-Pro honors in 1980 and 1981, and was the NFC MVP in 1980.

Source: The Ultimate Game at The PGA West Stadium Course