"I have to deal with it in every single press conference," he said. "I have to answer it in post-round interviews—whether it's with your guys or in a live shot [on TV]. You do that for a couple of years, sometimes you guys can be a little annoying."
Rumors have also circulated that Turkish Airlines would serve as a sponsor for Woods himself, but Steinberg maintained that is premature.
“That’s in its very embryonic stages right now,” he said. “I think Turkish Airlines is a very substantial event sponsor. Have there been some discussions? Yes, but it’s in the early stages.”
For Immediate Release, a pretty amazing commitment from such a new event that had so many question marks going in. And doing it all without a major corporate sponsor.
The Greenbrier Classic Extends PGA TOUR Agreement by Six Years
Added to current contract, third-year tournament now secured through 2021
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The PGA TOUR and The Greenbrier announced today that they have signed a six-year extension that carries The Greenbrier Classic agreement through 2021.
By extending the original six-year contract, which runs through 2015, The Greenbrier Classic now becomes the longest tournament commitment on the PGA TOUR. It also extends through the length of the TOUR’s television agreements with CBS, NBC and Golf Channel. The Greenbrier Classic, which begins Thursday at The Greenbrier’s The Old White TPC Course, is televised by Golf Channel through the first two rounds and by CBS during the weekend.
“The first three years of our contract with the PGA TOUR have been a thrilling ride,” said Jim Justice, Chairman and Owner of The Greenbrier. “The TOUR is a fantastic partner and we’re so proud and excited to announce that The Greenbrier Classic will remain a bright light on the landscape of the PGA TOUR and continue to give our fans heart-pounding tournament action for years to come. The entire state of West Virginia and the region as a whole have embraced the tournament from the very beginning. Without the passion and support of our local and regional communities The Greenbrier Classic could not have grown so quickly into one of the premiere events on TOUR.”
A West Virginian who was born and raised near The Greenbrier, Justice wanted to bring a PGA TOUR tournament to The Greenbrier from the time he purchased the resort in May 2009, believing a top-tier tournament would help restore The Greenbrier’s reputation as a five-star resort.
In just its second year, The Greenbrier Classic received several awards from the PGA TOUR at last year’s Annual PGA TOUR Tournament Meeting in December, including the coveted Best in Class among all tournaments.
“Jim Justice has shown genuine passion and commitment to not only host a PGA TOUR event, but to build one into a premier stop on the PGA TOUR,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem. “Through his dedicated efforts, Jim has managed to achieve his goal in just two years, as evidenced by last year’s Best in Class Award. He has turned The Greenbrier Classic into a true celebratory event during Fourth of July week. We’re obviously thrilled that Jim had a desire to move forward and extend beyond his original commitment after just three years.”
Jay Coffin notes an interesting Golf Channel Morning Drive discussion where Tiger bud Notah Begay suggested that based on Sunday's post round comments, Tiger takes great inspiration from proving his media critics wrong.
"Well, a lot of media people didn't think I could win again, and I had to deal with those questions for quite a bit," Woods said Sunday. "It was just a matter of time; I could see the pieces coming together."
Begay was asked if he believes Woods keeps score with the media, if he's aware of everything that's said or written about him.
"He doesn't forget what people write," Begay said. "He probably has a list under his pillow that motivates him at night."
Then shouldn't he actually like what the media is doing for his game? Maybe send down some champagne after a victory? You know, a little something for the effort?
It's been widely expected that Tiger Woods would tee it up in the Fall at the Frys.com Open this year but as James Corrigan and Derek Lawrenson both report, a new $5.3 million Turkish Airways World Golf Finals will be contested just eight days after the Ryder Cup, luring several big names with a huge purse.
It was inevitable, the wifes and significant others of Irish Open contestants getting scrutinized by a fashion writer, who in the case of this year's event, declared Alison Clarke the "clear winner" for her effortless styling.
Provisional figures showed the UK received 145.3mm (5.7 inches) during June, beating the previous record of 136.2mm (5.4 inches) seen in June 2007 - and more than double the average for June of 64.9mm (2.5 inches) It is the second month this year to see record-breaking amounts of rain, after this April became the wettest in the records dating back more than a century to 1910.
June saw long, prolonged rainfall and short but exceptionally heavy showers, and ended with freak storms which battered areas of the Midlands and the North East.
And maybe the most impressive, as he faced withering heat, a stubborn Bo Van Pelt and a difficult test, pulling off only-Tiger-can-hit-that-shots at 12 and 18 to win the AT&T National.
"No offense to any of those other guys, but he's the only guy to win three tournaments on TOUR this year;" said Van Pelt, who assisted Woods by bogeying his final three holes. "On three different golf courses, and he was leading the U.S. Open after two days. So I'd say that he's playing the best golf in the world right now."
Three times, Woods took the outright lead in the final round. Each time, Van Pelt made a birdie of his own to catch him. The tournament was decided on the last three holes, and it featured a surprising turn of events.
Van Pelt had Woods on the ropes on the par-5 16th by ripping a 345-yard tee shot and having only a 6-iron into the green. Woods hit a spectator in the left rough with his tee shot, laid up, and then attacked a back flag only to see the ball tumble over the green and down an 8-foot slope. It looked as if it might be a two-shot swing for Van Pelt, or at least the lead going to the 17th.
That's when Van Pelt answered with unforced errors of his own. His 6-iron was slightly heavy and didn't quite reach the bunker, meaning he had to plant his feet in the sand and grip the wedge on the shaft for his third shot. He moved it only a few yards, still in the collar of the rough, and chipped about 12 feet by the hole. Woods' chip up the slope rolled 15 feet by, and he missed the par putt.
Cameron Morfit, senior writer, Golf Magazine: What meant the most to Tiger, I'd guess, is that he won at a Congo that played more like a major course than the Congo of June 2011, when that other "next Tiger" won. (What was his name again?) Maybe the next Tiger is ... Tiger.
Alan Shipnuck, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: He's certainly POY so far, but even for Tiger 3.0, a year without a major is not a success. The British and PGA will determine how we (and he) view this season.
John Garrity, contributing writer, Sports Illustrated: Declaring Tiger "back" or "not back" may be a pointless exercise, but it's been a full-time job for most of us. My Tour Tempo co-author, John Novosel, declared Tiger "back" at the U.S. Open because Tiger was swinging with consistent tempo again. Same thing this week. So I say the Cat is Back and yeah, he's POY.
"I remember there was a time when people were saying I could never win again," Woods said. "Here we are.
"A lot of media people didn't think I could win again, and I had to deal with those questions for a quite a bit. It was just a matter of time."
Yet many of his doubters were also average golf fans. Since I joined ESPN.com in August, I have received an avalanche of mail from readers who have grown impatient with Tiger. Nearly every day for the past three years, people from all walks of life have drilled me with questions about Tiger's future.
Many of the fans or commenters generally fall into three camps. The first group abhors any mention of Tiger unless he's winning the tournament. On Saturday night, when Brendon De Jonge held a 1-shot lead over Tiger and Van Pelt, a reader pelted me for barely mentioning the 31-year-old Zimbabwe native in my column.
CBSSports.com includes this Feherty post-round interview with the usual sucking up from one EA Sports colleague to another, and also has Tiger talking about that incredible approach to 18.
Good news and slightly hard to believe, but the troops have rallied at The Greenbrier to clean up the mess from Friday night's storm to get the place back to some semblance of order for this week's Greenbrier Classic.
Geoff Shackelford is a Senior Writer for Golfweek magazine, a weekly contributor to Golf Channel's Morning Drive, is co-host of The Ringer's ShackHouse is the author of eleven books.
