When you come to think of it that is the secret of most of the great holes all over the world. They all have some kind of a twist. C.B. MACDONALD
After his opening round 64 at Bay Hill...
Q. Does Elin still cook pasta?
TIGER WOODS: She does.
Q. Do you still eat it?
TIGER WOODS: Of course. (Laughter).
That's great, remind him of the food poisoning his wife gave him!
Gary Van Sickle won't please Tiger with this SI.com column essentially outlining his playing schedule for the next few years:
The secret to getting Tiger to play in an event, by the way, is to hire him. Vickers never tumbled onto that fact or wasn't able to get it done. Woods explained his absence from the International, which he played twice and never returned, by saying he simply didn't like the golf course at Castle Rock, Colo.And...
The smartest operators were Buick, which signed Woods to an endorsement deal, with Tiger subsequently making the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines and the Buick Open in Grand Blanc, Mich., regular stops on his schedule while also also appearing at the Buick Classic at Westchester; and American Express, which guaranteed Tiger's presence in its World Golf Championship events by inking an endorsement deal.
Looking ahead, the fallout from Tiger's commitment to play regularly in the new Washington event means one less tournament he's going to play the rest of the year. Unless he's going to add to his schedule -- which seems unlikely -- adding a Tiger here means taking a Tiger away from somebody else.
So let's do the math: that's four majors, a Players, two Buicks, three WGCs and possibly four FedEx Cups. That's 14 tournaments. He has won four times at Bay Hill and lives only a few miles from the course. That's 15, the Tour minimum, and the same number he played last year.
Woods has frequently said he wants to bring golf to kids and minorities. Wouldn't a great way be entering, just once per five years or so, Tour events he has never or rarely played? Wouldn't that be great for the charities of those events?
What if Woods played Tour events in Houston, Los Angeles and Tampa, cities with large African-American and Hispanic populations? What about the Zurich Classic and the shot in the arm he would give the New Orleans area?
Right now, the events with Woods in the field are healthy. Too many that don't get him are struggling.
Perhaps it's unfair to Woods that he makes or breaks events, but there it is.
The question stands: Tiger, are you listening?
Hard to believe my NSA sources had time to pick up this Tiger Woods-Tim Finchem instant message exchange, what with all the time they put in on the Libby jury deliberations. Anyway...
Doug Ferguson writes about Tiger's new PGA Tour ad, filmed during his Nissan Open week off.
While at home in Florida two weeks ago, Woods did three spots for the PGA Tour. One of them was a voiceover, and the other two were scripted roles promoting the FedExCup.Ty, no mention of texture? And I had it marked on my PGA Tour MBASpeak bingo board! Oh well.
"Clearly, having Tiger do these spots is a very nice element of the campaign," tour spokesman Ty Votaw said. "It’s always good to have your No. 1 player participate in these things. He’s someone who resonates with our fans, and to see him in this kind of context is something the fans will enjoy."
Mark Steinberg at IMG said PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem approached him late last year and they found a spot in Woods’ schedule — coincidentally, it was the week of the Nissan Open, which Woods skipped for only the second time in his career.
Coincidentally, I think that's the week that he was undecided about playing up until the last minute!
Uh there's your confirmation: that lovely westside traffic really did leave a bad taste in his mouth. Can't say I blame Tiger.
This should also put to rest the silly stuff about him skipping Riviera to protect his streak.
PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem announced yesterday that the tour had reached a long-term agreement with the Tiger Woods Foundation, the educational charity established by Woods and his father in 1996, to be the host organization and beneficiary of a tournament in the Washington area July 5-8. The site of the event is undetermined, but the tour is in negotiations with Congressional Country Club, site of the 2011 U.S. Open, to host the event in 2007 and 2008.
Woods is expected to be a regular presence at the tournament, though his participation this year might be affected by the birth of his first child. Woods and his wife, Elin Nordegren, have not announced a due date, but he has said he might not play in the British Open July 19-22 because the baby is due around that time.
"When Tiger's foundation is involved, he has a pretty good track record of playing in the event," his longtime agent, Mark Steinberg, said yesterday. "This year, it may be something of a wild card because his wife is expecting at around that time, so everything is pretty much up in the air. But I can tell you he's very excited about the Washington event."
ESPN.com's Jason Sobel tracks down one of Tiger's rare childhood losses in match play. Thanks to reader John for catching this.
Does this mean Tiger really hates Denver's altitude that much?
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 27, 2007
PGA TOUR, TIGER WOODS FOUNDATION ANNOUNCE
NEW TOURNAMENT IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
Finchem, Woods to Announce Event Details at March 7 Press Conference
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FL - The PGA TOUR, in conjunction with the Tiger Woods Foundation, announced today that the TOUR will return to Washington, D.C. as a result of the two organizations reaching a long-term agreement to create a new PGA TOUR event in the nation’s capital, beginning in July, 2007.
The new tournament will be held the week of July 2-8 with the Tiger Woods Foundation serving as the event's host organization and primary charitable beneficiary. A press conference is scheduled for March 7 in Washington, D.C. where PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem and Tiger Woods will announce further details of the tournament, including the title sponsor, total purse, and the charitable vision for the event.
"After an extensive search, we are very excited about our partnership with the Tiger Woods Foundation to bring a PGA TOUR event back to our nation’s capital over the 4th of July holiday celebration," Finchem said. "We are delighted to be able to work with Tiger and his Foundation, and I look forward to joining him on March 7 to announce a very strong title sponsor and additional details of the tournament."
"This is a wonderful opportunity to expand awareness and interest in the work we're doing for millions of kids across the country," said Woods, founder of the Tiger Woods Foundation. "I'm grateful the PGA TOUR selected us as partners and am very excited my Foundation will host another amazing event, this time in our nation’s capital. I'm delighted to think of all the young people this will help us reach."
Additional information on the time and location of the March 7 press conference will be released later this week.
...but not before filing captivating accounts of what we already know.
Seems like a dumb question, right? Unfortunately that one was teed up for Tiger Woods and he uncharacteristicaly heel pulled it into the left rough.
But first, other highlights from his sitdown with the laptoppers in Tucson:
Q. I know you're concentrating on this week, but in the buildup to coming over here, I've read a lot in the media about the dialogue or lack of dialogue between you and the commissioner, about the schedule for this year. Can you tell us anything about that?
TIGER WOODS: I've talked to him quite a bit (smiling), so I don't know where that comes from.
Q. Well, there's been talk about given the new sort of format this year that -- is there a situation where you could maybe fall short of the minimum requirements of playing this year and maybe miss out on some of the climax to the FedExCup?
TIGER WOODS: I've just got to play 15 events, right? That's what I did last year.
Gee, what a ringing endorsement for the FedEx Cup and the PGA Tour!
Q. I don't know if you're reading the same stuff as me, but basically they were saying that there is a kind of atmosphere between you and the commissioner.
TIGER WOODS: We talk about once a week, so I don't know where that comes from. He's got my cell phone and we talk. It's funny, we just missed each other skiing. I have no idea where that's coming from.
How sweet, just missed each other on the slopes. Let's hope they don't run into each other.
Which reminds me, this slug for the Lakers Radmanovic slipped in Park City, separated his shoulder and already they're calls for a contract reading to see if he violated a clause by skiing (oh wait, he was in Park City for the great sidewalk shopping, forgive me).
As much as they are paying him, does Nike really let Tiger ski? Guess so. Anyway...
Q. As a budding golf course architect, when you come to a new venue, come to a new community that has such a historic golfing tradition, do you approach it a little bit differently than when you were just playing, or have you always taken the mindset that, could I come here and design a golf course in place like that?
TIGER WOODS: It's interesting, since I started to get into that part of my life, every golf course I play, I look at the golf course differently now. Why would they construct that? Why would they build this? What were they thinking here? Trying to understand it instead of just plotting my way around the golf course. I do look at golf courses now, and it is kind of fun.
And...
Q. In your design career and with a new baby on the way, where do you stand in terms of the environmental aspects of golf, and where will you be designing environmentally-friendly golf courses in the future?
TIGER WOODS: That's the whole idea. That's the challenge of it. As an architect, that's what your responsibility is to do, to also provide a wonderful playing environment. That's a task that I think is going to be -- that's been at the forefront for all architects for decades.
Uh, Tiger, they mean are you going to build a wetlands at Al Jambajuicia to mitigate the puddle that you are bulldozing over. Your architecture buddy,
Geoff
Blasphemy! We're talking about a man who loves Firestone, so I'm sure he can find Al Jumbalya to his liking. Ron Fream does not agree.
Fream told The New Paper: 'Tiger Woods' first golf course will be the product of the ability and talent, knowledge and experience of those who surround him.
'Tiger learned nothing of golf course architecture at Stanford University.
'His ability to focus is so intense that when he walks a golf course, he does not see the course or the surroundings.
'He only sees his ball, his target and then the next target.
'The first Tiger Woods course cannot be a course Tiger likes to play on.
'His design will most likely accommodate many expected tourist visitors and average players and, maybe one day, play host to a championship.
'Tiger knows nothing of land use master planning and, therefore, cannot contribute significantly to the interface of golf and adjacent housing development, which will be a source of revenue to pay off his huge design fee.
'Tiger knows nothing of golf course construction methods. He knows nothing of technical turf-grass maintenance.
'Building a golf course in Dubai, where temperatures often exceed 45 degrees Celsius, gets special expectations for construction and maintenance.'
So how will his course look like?
He said: 'The Tiger Woods course will have dramatic terrain changes as the site is flat now.
'It will use a lot of water for lakes and maybe streams.
'A large number of date palm trees will surround the golf holes.
'Greens cannot be overly contoured. Sand bunkering will be a major attraction.'
From Thomas Bonk in today's L.A. Times:
In case you're wondering, Tiger Woods is in Florida this week shooting commercials instead of shooting under par at Riviera.
Wow, Tiger's people are good. You know, throwing together a film crew at the last minute like that!
Doug Ferguson filed a follow up to the Vickers-Finchem press conference stories by going to the Commish so that he could rebut the Vickers post-press conference claims. (Wouldn't it have been easier if they were just honest when the mikes were on?)
The PGA Tour has narrowed it search to four cities to replace the International, and commissioner Tim Finchem said Friday that a return to Washington likely would be the first choice if all options were equal.
The other cities being considered for the Fourth of July spot on the schedule are Portland, Ore., Minneapolis and another market he declined to identify that "just came across the tracks.''
Nothing like a good railroad metaphor.
"When we get done and we're ready to prioritize, if all is about equal and Washington was one of them, we would probably prioritize Washington because we know it's a great time with the Fourth of July ... and it would be nice to have members of Congress involved.''
Why would it be nice to have members of Congress involved? Am I missing something?
Finchem said Congress has been supportive of The First Tee, a program aimed at getting kids involved with golf.
Uh huh.
"On the one hand, the Tour's asking for a new five- or six-year commitment and you've got a one-man show out there right now that is the big difference,'' Vickers said Thursday.
Finchem disagreed. He said if that were true, "we would have a schedule of 18 events.''
"That's just not the case,'' Finchem said. "When Tiger Woods plays, more people watch on TV and more tickets are sold. When he doesn't play, a lot of tickets are sold, a lot of money is raised for charity and our TV numbers are solid for the value of a sponsor.''
Uh huh.
My latest Golfobserver.com column is now posted.
Geoff Shackelford is a Senior Writer for Golfweek magazine, a weekly contributor to Golf Channel's Morning
Copyright © 2022, Geoff Shackelford. All rights reserved.
