PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Web.com, a publicly-traded company based in Jacksonville, is the new umbrella sponsor of the Web.com Tour, formerly known as the Nationwide Tour.

That announcement was made this morning at the AT&T National in Bethesda, Maryland by PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem, Web.com's Chairman, President, and CEO, David L. Brown, and Bill Calfee, the President of the Web.com Tour.

Nationwide Insurance had been the title sponsor of this tour since 2003, but Web.com will take over immediately.  The agreement between Web.com and the PGA TOUR will be in effect for the next ten years.

Web.com is the leading provider of internet services and online marketing solutions for small to medium-sized businesses.

One of the main purposes of the Web.com Tour is to continue to indentify and transition players who are ready to compete and win on the PGA Tour.  A lot of current PGA TOUR players have worked their way up on the Web.com Tour which has been in existence since 1990.

Beginning in 2013, the top 50 leading money winners on the Web.com Tour will qualify for the PGA TOUR.  Previously, the top 25 leading money winners were awarded PGA TOUR membership.

The first event in the newly renamed Web.com Tour is this week's United Leasing Championship at Victoria National Golf Club near Evansville, Indiana.

First Coast News