A new strategy for golf’s oldest major
A carefully conceived rebrand, crafted to deliver significantly more value to a storied championship.
The Open rebrand reinstated the events status, reclaimed the championships heritage, and pulled off a radical transformation within the hearts and minds of fans and the R&A alike. By injecting personality via a series of highly effective assets, the new strategy convincingly evoked one central theme: Openness + Britishness.
The new branding celebrates values long associated with The Open, the inspiration provided by great champions, the authentic and unrelenting challenge of links golf and the openness of our unique championship.
Peter Dawson
Chief Executive of The R&A
Building brand champions
Changing the brand is easy compared to changing the mindsets of those who love it.
We began the transformative process with interviews and workshops to motivate fans, decision makers and committee members. Designwerk worked closely with the R&A to activate the brand, developing an app for internal education as well as comprehensive usage guides for event, web, merchandise, way finding and broadcast to ensure complete saturation of the rebrand for global audiences.
A bespoke typeface: The Open 1860
Creating an exclusive, authentic and consistent tone of voice.
The Open 1860 is a type family that expresses The Open’s core foundations and direction while modernising its heritage and history. With multiple weights it offers a range of expression through type – from tickets, to signage, to pin flags.
75%
of UK fans surveyed 'strongly liked' the new logo.
2,700 hours
of launch video watched online across Facebook and Youtube.
4 million
impressions on posts, tweets and uploads.
History re-made
Putting the Claret Jug back on the world stage.
Forging a new trophy that embodies such sense of history and legacy is no easy task.
