$2.3 Billion For IMG On $200 Million In Annual Earnings?

Brooks Barnes and David Gelles of NYT's Dealbook analyze William Morris Endeavor's winning bid for IMG, and it was a tad surprising to see the estimates for annual earnings.

From their report:

The sale of IMG was prompted by the 2011 death of Theodore J. Forstmann, a founder of the Forstmann Little private equity firm. Forstmann Little acquired IMG for $750 million in 2004 and focused on expanding it from primarily a talent agency into a broader sports-and-marketing agency. IMG is expecting $200 million this year in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, according to people briefed on the matter, though another person estimated the figure at closer to $150 million when accounting for certain adjustments.

For the world of golf IMG will almost surely continue to be a major presence. For what it's worth, new co-chair Ari Emanuel is a golf nut and member of Riviera.

On an almost completely unrelated note, IMG produces the R&A's annual Open Championship highlight show and they did a beautiful job recapping this year's epic at Muirfield. The producers interviewed all of the key participants (well, except you know who...) and it's fascinating to get player and caddy insights into how Phil Mickelson's win unfolded.

The next listed Golf Channel airing is scheduled for Thursday at 4 pm ET.