PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLORIDA - MARCH 12: Justin Rose of England plays his shot from the 15th tee ... [+] during the final round of THE PLAYERS Championship on THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass on March 12, 2023 in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) Getty Images Morgan Stanley has been a proud partner of the PGA Tour’s de facto fifth major since 2016, making this week’s edition the financial services giant’s tin cup anniversary. Last year, to mark the Players 50th edition, the firm presented an augmented reality experience on mobile devices aimed at both fans onsite at TPC Sawgrass as well as those watching the tourney from home. 11-time PGA Tour winner, Justin Rose, Morgan Stanley’s brand ambassador, served as a golf culture sherpa, setting the scene of iconic moments and often injecting wit and levity—"I hope that pond was gator-free,” the affable Englishman quipped after one storied moment. “Tour Through Time was such a fun project. It was really cool to celebrate the history of this iconic tournament and to recognize some epic moments at TPC Sawgrass,” Justin Rose said. They’re once again showcasing leading technology, this time with a nifty AI Course Setup Tool powered by AWS. The tool assists agronomists, tour officials and field staff by allowing them to forecast how each hole will play during the tournament. Rose is stoked to see how insights from predictive artificial intelligence impact play while also offering a glimpse into future applications—like preemptively assessing how even subtle architectural changes, from adding trees to adjusting landforms, will affect scoring. “It is being used for the very first time this week, and I think we will be feeling the ripples of the introduction of this AI technology into the game of golf for years to come. It’s exciting to see it launch,” he added. MORE FOR YOU BlackRock CEO Issues Serious Warning Amid $1 Trillion Bitcoin And Crypto Price Sell-Off iOS 18.3.2—Update Now Warning Issued To All iPhone Users Northern Lights Alert: These 10 States Could See Aurora Borealis Tonight According to Morgan Stanley chief marketing officer Alice Milligan, the new app leverages AI to optimize tee and hole locations using the foresight of simulated results that take into account everything from driving distance to the extent to which the rough penalizes missed fairways. While officials have always made educated guesses about setup impact, this tool crunches numbers in a way that should bring more precision to the task while also speeding up decision making. “The opportunity to bring this modern technology to a very manual process with a groundbreaking tool and app feels like a natural next step for what we were doing in the space of innovation over the past few years,” Milligan said. Broader Impact Giving back has long been a hallmark of the sponsorship. Over the past decade Morgan Stanley has donated nearly $2 million to charitable organizations nationwide, including First Tee, through its Eagles for Impact campaign, which donates $5,000 for every double-circled score on pros’ scorecards. This year, a fan experience tied to that initiative will further ratchet up the tournament’s charitable impact. Morgan Stanley hospitality area setup at the Players Championship. Morgan Stanley Reflecting on the Players partnership, Mandell Crawley, chief client officer at Morgan Stanley, who was chief marketing officer at the inception of the relationship, also emphasized the tournament’s philanthropic importance and its alignment with the firm’s core values. “One of the hallmarks of any longstanding brand partnership is a commitment to shared values. Since we teamed up with the Players in 2016 we have consistently collaborated to give back to the communities we serve and inspire the next generation of leaders, on and off the course,” he said. Morgan Stanley has come to view the exclamation point on the tour’s Florida Swing as a kindred spirit and The Players has become a key tentpole marketing event for them. With last year’s partnership renewal, the firm’s commitment to The Players isn’t just a long-term play—it’s a cornerstone of its sports marketing strategy. Follow me on Twitter. Editorial StandardsForbes Accolades