PGA Tour's Newest Marketing Partner Is No Stretch: Massage Envy - Forbes

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A technically-sound swing isn’t the only reason a player like Justin Thomas regularly blasts drives over 300 yards despite being 5-foot-10 and weighing 145 pounds. Flexibility and range of motion are crucial to generating more power and, perhaps more importantly, to staying healthy.

Although only 24, Thomas is a big proponent of assisted stretching to ensure he stays limber and is able to continue competing at a high level for another 20 to 30 years. And he’s certainly not alone in the world of professional golf.

It’s why the PGA Tour’s newest marketing partner -- Massage Envy -- is a stretch only in the literal sense.

PGA Tour


Massage Envy CEO Joe Magnacca stands in front of one of the Player Performance trailers available each week on both the PGA Tour and the senior tour.


Massage Envy has signed a four-year partnership with the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions to become the official total body care sponsor of the mobile and wellness trailers for players. It’s the PGA Tour’s first agreement with a brand in the massage and skin care categories, and the first major sports partnership for Massage Envy, which has 1,150 franchise locations in 49 states.


Massage Envy’s pairing with professional golf’s biggest tour coincides with the introduction of the company’s new assisted stretching service. Performed with the assistance of a trained service provider, the proprietary system called Total Body Stretch is built around a series of 10 targeted stretches designed to increase flexibility, mobility and performance.

Massage Envy


Massage Envy is introducing an assisted total body stretching service.


Flexibility and mobility are crucial for performance in golf, which is why it’s fairly common to see trainers and physical therapists helping tour pros with a stretching program. I still remember how eye-opening it was the first time I saw noted trainer Joey Diovisalvi grabbing a hold of a leg to help stretch out a physical freak like Dustin Johnson, whose range of motion in the swing seems to defy physics.

Thomas, meanwhile, is among 10 PGA Tour players who have signed promotional relationships with Massage Envy, the nation’s leading provider of therapeutic massage and skincare services.

“It’s crazy nowadays how important how fitness, injury prevention and stretching is,” Thomas says in an interview. “When I was playing high school and college golf, it was kind of the beginning of that wave. Now that I’m out here playing out here at the professional level, I understand how important it is. I know I’m only 24, but to be able to play without injury is pretty awesome. To wake up in the morning and feel good when you go two, three, four weeks on the road, it’s crucial.”

Justin Thomas waits to putt during the third round of this year's U.S. Open. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)


Thomas, who averages 305 yards off the tee and is coming off a week in which he tied a major-championship record with his third-round 63 at the U.S. Open, said his biggest problem is tightness in his feet and ankles.

“People hear that and say that’s not really that big a deal, but when your feet are tight then your calves get tight,” says Thomas. “Then it goes up your leg and leads to hip tightness. When your hips are tight, that creates back pain. This is all stuff I didn’t know growing up.

“Now I’m constantly making sure that I have enough range of motion in my ankles to where my calves are loose enough,” he adds. “When they’re tight that’s when everything else seems to lock up for me. When I don’t have that tightness, then the rest of my body moves a little better.”

Jason Day stretches on course during last year's World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)


Jonas Blixt, Patrick Cantlay, Bud Cauley, Tony Finau, Smylie Kaufman, Jamie Lovemark, Patrick Rodgers, Brandt Snedeker and Henrik Stenson have also signed on with the PGA Tour’s newest partner, which will start offering its Total Body Stretch service in July at its facilities across the country.

You’ll also find it on the PGA Tour.

The staffers who man the Player Performance Centers each week will be certified in the company’s proprietary Streto Method, which was developed by an award-winning chiropractor, massage therapist and ergonomist. The Massage Envy brand will be prominently displayed on one of the two trailers available each week on both the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions to support player performance and wellness with fitness training, physical therapy and chiropractic services.

Massage Envy


The Player Performance trailers on the PGA Tour will feature the Massage Envy logo on the side.


“The PGA Tour and its players have a deep appreciation for body care and how it can boost performance,” Massage Envy CEO Joe Magnacca said. “Massage Envy is proud of making massage an integral part of so many people’s lives and now, we are bringing Total Body Stretch and our Streto Method not just to professional golfers, but to everyone as part of their wellness routine.”

Massage Envy becomes the second new sponsor category to join the PGA Tour in two months, following restaurant chain Arby’s in May.

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