The Fortinet Championship to Continue to Bring Together Top Technology and Golf Talent

The Fortinet Championship—the first tournament of 2022-2023 PGA TOUR FedEx Cup season—tees off at the Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa Valley, California on September 15–18, 2022. This Fortinet-sponsored event is unique in that it brings together the world’s best golfers and their fans with the Fortinet community—employees, executives, partners, customers, and other technology leaders.

“We are excited to again have the Fortinet Championship as an integral part of the FedEx Cup season,” said Tyler Dennis, President of the PGA TOUR. “Last September, in its inaugural year, the Fortinet team did a stellar job of meeting and often exceeding the PGA TOUR’s high standards for our tournaments. With Fortinet, we expect another spectacular event this year and appreciate its support in continuing to grow the popularity of our sport as well as the charitable impact the Fortinet Championship has on the local community.”

Meet Our Brand Ambassadors

Max Homa, currently the FedEx Cup’s 9th ranked player, won the first Fortinet Championship last year by one-stroke in an exciting come from behind victory. A few months later in December 2021, the 31-year-old Californian was named a Fortinet Global Brand Ambassador.

We’re thrilled that Max will be back in Napa this September to defend his title against PGA TOUR veterans and rookies like David Lipsky. David is also a Fortinet Brand Ambassador as of this year.

Teeing Up the Best of Napa Valley

“This event will provide PGA fans with the best of Napa Valley food and wine, popular musicians, and a field of 150+ of the best golfers all in one event,” said John Maddison, CMO and EVP of Products at Fortinet.

“In addition to four days of high-caliber professional golf, the Fortinet Championship will host a Security Summit and Technology Vendor Expo on-site at the Silverado Resort, building on the success of last year’s event. Fortinet and our partners—some of the technology industry’s most accomplished individuals, will converge at the Security Summit to discuss the future of cybersecurity.”

Summit and Exposition

The Security Summit will be held on two days, Tuesday, September 13, and Friday, September 16. Both days are designed to be a full-day symposium with a different roster of keynote speakers, panelists, and experts in roundtable discussions. The agenda will be centered on innovative ideas and best practices that will help securely propel digital transformation.

Topics on the agenda for discussion at this year’s Security Summit will include managing cyber risk; securing critical infrastructure; how security is critical to innovation; securing cloud migration and connectivity; zero trust access; and closing the cyber skills gap.

Also, members from the recently announced Fortinet Public Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) will attend the Summit to engage in discussions tied to understanding, assessing, managing, and mitigating cyber risk. Members announced as part of the Fortinet PSAC are former Washington state governor Gary Locke (Chairperson), Rachelle Chong, General James Clapper, Peter Jennings, General Sir Richard Shirreff, and Suzanne Spaulding.

“Last year, over twenty thought leaders shared insights on the latest evolutions of cybersecurity as part of the Security Summit Symposium, which was complemented with our Technology Expo of over 35 partners showcasing new and emerging technologies and solutions. We expect this year’s Summit and Expo to continue to be compelling and useful to attendees,” said Maddison.

Leadership Panels and Tech Showcases

The Fortinet Executive Leadership Panel will also return to the Security Summit, offering attendees the opportunity to learn from our cybersecurity industry luminaries and leaders— Ken Xie, founder, chairman of the board and CEO; Michael Xie, founder, president, and CTO; and Keith Jensen, CFO—about the future of cybersecurity and the role Fortinet will play in driving that future forward.

This year’s Expo vendors will include representatives from AT&T, AWS, Google Cloud, and Intel. The Expo dates are September 12 through September 18. Fortinet and our global partners plan to showcase our latest cybersecurity innovations, including new and emerging technologies, as well as the power of integration.

Closing the Cybersecurity Skills Gap

For Fortinet, one of the biggest benefits of this partnership with the PGA TOUR is its ongoing commitment to our surrounding community and Napa Valley-area nonprofit organizations. Fortinet has committed to contributing net proceeds from the tournament to nonprofits that share the Fortinet vision of building an inclusive and diverse workplace and closing the cybersecurity skills gap.

Organizations that have benefitted from that joint support include Alaina’s Voice Foundation; Cameron Champ Foundation; Eat. Learn. Play Foundation; and WINE WOMEN. Additionally, local Napa Valley nonprofits that will also benefit from the Fortinet Championship include the Keller Restaurant Relief Fund; Napa Valley Vine Trail Foundation; Travis Air Force Base Reserves; and Queen of the Valley Foundation.

In 2019, Fortinet pledged to train one million people globally over five years through its Training Advancement Agenda (TAA) and Fortinet Training Institute programs to help close the cybersecurity skills gap. These and other programs, such as Fortinet’s TAA Initiative, which provides free Network Security Expert (NSE) Certifications and training, as well as academic partner and education outreach programs are cultivating a skilled, inclusive, and diverse cybersecurity workforce will continue Fortinet efforts to help close the skills gap.

And There’s More…Music!

The Fortinet Championship Concert Series will be held on the South Course at Silverado Resort and Spa immediately following completion of play Friday, September 16 and Saturday, September 17. Concert admission is included in the cost of the daily ticket.

Friday night will feature multi-platinum country music star Cole Swindell with special guest Gavin DeGraw. Grammy nominated powerhouse OneRepublic, with special guest X Ambassadors, will take the stage on Saturday night.

For more information about the Fortinet Championship, the concerts, and buying tickets, please visit www.fortinetchampionship.com.