MIAMI (AP) -- Too bad there wasn't a scavenger hunt at the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week. There could have been one item on the list that might have stumped everyone.
Find a FedExCup logo at Bay Hill.
This being the "new era in golf," FedEx Cup logos have been everywhere on the PGA Tour from scoreboards to tee boxes, on promotional material and even the FedEx Cup truck parked somewhere on the golf course.
But the logo was missing at Bay Hill, and that was no accident.
"We try not to change the basic character of the event," said Tom Wade, chief marketing officer of the PGA Tour.
The tour tirelessly promotes the first eight months of the season as part of the FedExCup season, and there have been boardroom battles recently between title sponsors and the tour over sharing advertising space with another company.
Bay Hill, however, doesn't have a title sponsor. MasterCard is the presenting sponsor, meaning it doesn't pay as much money and doesn't get as much exposure. If the tour were to fill up signs with FedExCup, the presenting sponsor would be squeezed out even more.
In other words, don't look for any FedExCup logos at the Memorial, either.
"Jack (Nicklaus) believes the tournament should be conducted in a way, from a signage standpoint, that's consistent over the years," Tournament Director Dan Sullivan said. "We don't have any corporate identification when it comes to on-course signage. We don't have a PGA Tour logo. And we won't have a FedExCup logo."
He said Morgan Stanley, the presenting sponsor, will show up on the main scorecard, the daily pairings sheet and the magazine.
If the lack of title sponsor gets Nicklaus and Palmer off the hook, keep an eye on the Canadian Open. The third-oldest national championship in golf currently has no title sponsor, yet it still is burdened with FedExCup logos.
"We'd have that discussion with them," Tournament Director Bill Paul said. "Right now, it's not that much of an issue with me."
Paul said he's disturbed by what he considers different rules for different tournaments. It really hit home last year at the Memorial during a meeting with tournament directors, when he admired the clean look at Muirfield Village.
"It hit me on the last day," he said. "The only PGA Tour logo I've seen all week is on the fitness trailer. So I asked the question, didn't get an answer and just smiled. My only take is that Mr. Nicklaus and Mr. Palmer have different rules. I know all Mr. Palmer and Mr. Nicklaus have done for the game. But I don't think it's right."
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