On Monday, ahead of the 49th edition of The Honda Classic, tournament officials announced that its media center would be renamed in honor of golf journalist Tim Rosaforte, 65, who is battling early-onset Alzheimer’s Disease.

While familiar to national audiences as a Golf Channel reporter, insider, and storyteller, Rosaforte first made his name as a local golf scribe in South Florida, covering the comings and going of the many PGA Tour players and events, particularly The Honda Classic.

A graduate of the University of Rhode Island (1977), Rosaforte moved to Florida, and over the next 15 years developed his craft as a reporter for newspapers, including the Tampa Times, the Sun-Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale, and eventually the Palm Beach Post, where he really made his name in the golf world.

He moved on to national magazines in 1993, first at Sports Illustrated, and then over to Golf World/Golf Digest where he’d also appear on Golf Channel as a contributor. Eventually, in 2007, Rosaforte was hired fulltime, and spent the next 12 years as the golf network’s soft spoken “insider” and preeminent storyteller.

“Tim has been such a vital part of the history of The Honda Classic from his work as a writer and broadcaster to the emcee of so many of our pro-am dinners and sponsor events,” said Ken Kennerly, Executive Director of The Honda Classic.

“It is only fitting now that he has retired from broadcasting that we find ways to honor him for his years of service to the game and to the community.”

The tournament also announced the Tim Rosaforte Distinguished Writers’ Award, which will be presented annually. Rosaforte will be the first recipient.

Rosaforte, an author of five books, three of which are on Tiger Woods, has won more than 40 writing awards, and has covered nearly 125 major championships and 17 Ryder Cups.

The last major Rosaforte covered for Golf Channel was the Open Championship in Northern Ireland. His final Tour event was The Honda Classic at PGA National in February 2020.