- PointsBet has announced a partnership with Canadian golf course operator ClubLink.
- ClubLink hosts 1,000,000 rounds of golf annually at its facilities in Ontario.
- PointsBet becomes the ‘Official Sports Betting Partner’ of ClubLink.
PointsBet is off to a fast start in the Canadian market–literally. They accepted their first bet in Ontario just 50 seconds after the launch of the province’s regulated sports betting market. They’re now trying to gain market share in Ontario and establish their brand nationally. They’re leveraging a similar strategy to the one they used in the US, specifically Colorado. The primary component of this strategy is to partner with sports organizations and businesses, large and small.
The PointsBet partnerships are all over the map. They’ve partnered with the Canadian Olympic skiing oversight body Alpine Canada and their curling counterpart Curling Canada. In Ontario, they’ve signed promotional partnerships in Ontario with several of the biggest names in Canadian professional sports. Their first Canadian pro sports partnership was the Canadian Football League (CFL) Ottawa REDBLACKS. They’ve since signed a promotional deal with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which owns the majority of the professional sports teams in Toronto including the NHL Maple Leafs, the NBA Raptors, the MLS Toronto FC, the CFL Argonauts and the AHL Marlies.
Golf has always been synonymous with gambling. In light of this, PointsBet is going after the golfer at the ‘grass roots level’. They’re hoping to do this with their newly announced partnership with ClubLink, Canada’s largest owner and operator of golf clubs. The multi-year deal names PointsBet the ‘Official Sports Betting Partner’ of ClubLink which hosts over 1,000,000 rounds of golf annually at its clubs in Ontario. ClubLink also operates facilities in Quebec and Florida.
Nic Sulsky, Chief Commercial Officer at PointsBet Canada, is excited to partner with one of the marquee brands in the Canadian golf industry:
“We are delighted to be partnering with one of the most recognized brands in Canadian golf. A friendly wager is a regular occurrence among golfers enjoying a round which makes the ClubLink audience a natural fit for us. Golfers are some of the most passionate sports fans and we cannot wait to show them why PointsBet is the two-time winner of EGR North America’s Best Sports Betting Operator.”
Keesje Kort, Director of Commercial Partnerships at PointsBet Canada, pointed to his company’s localized presence which includes an office in the Toronto area:
“From day one, PointsBet Canada has been focused on living our brand as one of the few locally based Canadian companies through long-term partnerships with brands that embody our country’s sports landscape. We’re looking forward to a summer of fun engaging ClubLink’s members throughout their clubs in Ontario.”
Brent Miller, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development at ClubLink, returned the pleasantries:
“Newly launched in Ontario, PointsBet has already shown a great deal of dedication to offering unique experiences to its customers. We’re thrilled to partner with one of the preeminent sports wagering operators in the world and to add value to the ClubLink Member experience through PointsBet’s support of our network-wide championships.”
While Ontario’s competitive sports betting ecosystem is booming, the other provinces in Canada have been reticent to move away from their ‘provincial lottery monopoly’ format. Hopefully, they’ll have a change of heart–as Ontario’s success has shown, the competitive market is more lucrative for the province as well as being better for gaming companies and players.
