This Weekend's Airplane Banner Won't Be Heckling Tiger

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For those wondering what that plane is doing at the Chevron World Challenge this weekend, here's a news release explaining what's up. Though I'm not sure about cleverness of announcing such a stunt in advance.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DECEMBER 3, 2011

Chevron Challenged for Environmental Crimes at Golf Tournament

Groups Demand Company Follow Court Orders and Clean up Toxic Mess in Ecuador

Thousand Oaks, CA – Today Rainforest Action Network (RAN) and Amazon Watch challenged Chevron Chairman and CEO John S. Watson with a high-flying demand that he clean up his company’s toxic mess in the Ecuadorian Amazon. An airplane banner will circle overhead for three hours on two days of the Chevron World Challenge golf tournament, calling on the executive to remediate the environmental disaster in Ecuador after three decades of contaminating the country's rainforest in reckless pursuit of profit.

RAN and Amazon Watch sponsored this message to Chevron, demanding that the company abide by the $18 billion judgment resulting from one of the world's largest oil-related disasters in history. In a historic ruling this fall, a group of Ecuadorian indigenous and farming communities prevailed over Chevron in both U.S. and Ecuadorian courts in their legal efforts to hold the company accountable for human rights violations and the ongoing environmental crisis it caused in Ecuador. CEO Watson and other Chevron executives routinely defy court orders by stating publically that they will never pay.

“Chevron has spent the last 18 years waging unprecedented public relations and legal campaigns to avoid dealing with the environmental and public health catastrophe it left in the Amazon rainforest,” said Ginger Cassady, Director of RAN’s Change Chevron campaign. “Today we’re challenging Chevron to clean more than their public image and repair the toxic legacy left in Ecuador.”

Today’s banner action comes on the heels of damning statements from another group of Latin Americans: government and regulatory officials in Brazil. After Chevron spilled an estimated 110,000 gallons of pure crude into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the state of Rio, Brazilian officials were outraged by Chevron executives’ response. At first Chevron lied about the origin of the spill, then they low-balled the number of barrels spilled into the ocean and told regulators the damage was contained when it wasn’t. Brazilian officials are threatening fines up to $145 million, as well as possible prison terms, for what they describe as Chevron’s "environmental crimes."

“From Ecuador to Brazil, Chevron has cemented its position in South America as an ambassador of arrogance and environmental racism,” said Mitch Anderson, Corporate Campaigns Director at Amazon Watch. “This is a company that consistently flouts the rule of law with tremendous hubris. As we know from the ancient Greeks, hubris comes with an awful price.”

The Brazil spill is the most recent embarrassment for Watson during his tenure as Chevron’s chief executive. The Ecuador disaster has generated negative publicity for 18 years and cost Chevron hundreds of millions of dollars in legal fees.

Both Chevron and the Ecuadorians have appealed the $18 billion judgment in Ecuador. The Ecuadorians are arguing for a higher damage award. If the judgment is upheld by the country's appeals court, the Ecuadorians will prepare to seize Chevron's assets in other countries, possibly in Latin America, as the company no longer owns assets in Ecuador.

Great Time To Buy Tiger!

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The NY Times's Ken Belson talks to merchandising and packaging experts who say Tiger's a good buy right now. Naturally, I just enjoy reading quotes about a product that doubles as a person.

“He was brought down, but he’s rebuilding again and rebuilding a different way,” said Ira Mayer, the publisher of the Licensing Letter, a newsletter than tracks merchandising deals. “At this point, he’s the underdog, and that’s a strategy, too. Bill Clinton survived worse, and Tiger is not a head of state.”

This year, Woods has won $660,000 on the PGA Tour, a far cry from the $10.5 million he earned in 2009.

But whatever his troubles, he remains the highest-paid athlete in the world. Last year, he earned more than $62 million from prize money and endorsements, 51 percent less than in 2008, according to the annual study by Sports Illustrated. In the wake of his personal and professional difficulties, Nike, EA Sports and other sponsors did not walk away.

Rolex partnered with Woods until 2002, when he switched to another watchmaker, Tag Heuer. When that deal ended this summer, Rolex re-signed him. Rolex was motivated to work with Woods not just because it competes with Tag Heuer, but also because he remains a popular figure overseas, particularly with wealthy consumers, branding executives said.

“Internationally, he’s been forgiven more quickly,” said Bob Dorfman, who writes the Sports Marketers’ Scouting Report. “It’s a good time to buy Tiger in that sense.”

The story goes on to quote Tiger talking about the Fuse product and how he had scientists independently verify the validity of the product claims. Let's just hope he doesn't get accused of cheating with another power drink like he did during the Gatorade days.

"In short, we still don't know if Tiger will really be back. But Australia gave us some strong evidence that he is finally feeling accepted."

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I rarely disagree with my colleague Jaime Diaz, but in the case of his Golf World column on what Royal Melbourne proved about Woods game, I don't agree.

The Royal Melbourne Composite course may have been a beast, but it played to Woods' strength. For all the hosannas raised to the Alister Mackenzie masterpiece, at less than 7,000 yards, to hold up, it had to be tricked up. Only carefully crafted and supremely struck iron shots were well received by the rock-hard and crazy-fast greens, and Woods can still hit more of those than anyone. What the layout didn't require was the driver, and that's the club that will tell where Woods really is with his swing. Finally, Woods got a relatively easy singles draw against Aaron Baddeley, who was shaky after his Calcavecchian miss off the 18th tee on the opening day set a negative tone for his team.

In short, we still don't know if Tiger will really be back. But Australia gave us some strong evidence that he is finally feeling accepted.

Other than some silly rough, I don't think Royal Melbourne was tricked up. As I noted in my story for the same issue of Golf World (not posted), the PGA Tour staff did a super job backing off the pedal to ensure that the course was not tricked up during Friday's potentially Shinnecockian day.

Furthermore, the conditions were major-championship-like in terms of crowd presence and speed of the golf course, making the kind of golf Woods and several others displayed pretty telling about the level of one's game.

Now, as for the driver issue, it is true that Woods didn't have to hit a lot of drivers. But a quick look at the 2012 major schedule will show that the driver will not be an important club at two and perhaps three of the venues. Stingers will be a golfer's friend in 2012, which bodes well for Tiger.

Stevie: I Should Have Left Tiger Right After Scandal Broke

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In a lengthy interview with Graham Bensinger recorded before controversial remarks in Shanghai, luggage looper Stevie Williams says he should have left his man when scandal broke so he could go out on a high note.

“I think everything you do in life, you’d like to go out on a high as opposed to a low,” Williams said. “Looking back, perhaps after Tiger competed down here in Australia at the Australian Masters, it was a very memorable win. I really enjoyed that tournament. That was the last event he played before all the events transpired. Perhaps I should have, you know, left him then.”

And...

“I didn’t know all was going to happen, obviously. I didn’t know what was about to unfold. Looking back, my gut feeling at some time said that was a good way to finish."

Here's the interview:

Steiny: "I think there is significantly different sentiment in the media than the public."

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The stomach can only handle so much (though I must say, the food Down Under is dynamite), so I have postponed reading Bob Harig's story on Tiger's new bag deal for fear of agitation. Instead, we get to see just how completely disconnected from reality Tiger agent Mark Steinberg is from reality.
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