Major(s) News & Notes December 9th, 2021
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This week’s edition looks at how USGA Presidency history was made this week, twice.
If you’re not signed up for free or as a paid subscriber, you can do so here.
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
Maybe, Yes Sir! Tiger Woods To Play 2021 PNC Championship
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Given what we know of his accident and the relatively short healing time since then, it’s amazing to see this. But he’s obviously feeling good and undoubtedly has the approval of his doctors. Should be fun:
TIGER WOODS TO PLAY 2021 PNC CHAMPIONSHIP
ORLANDO, Dec. 8, 2021 - Tiger Woods has confirmed he will return to competitive golf next week at the 2021 PNC Championship, taking place at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club Orlando, Grande Lakes, Dec. 16-19.
Woods will partner with his son Charlie as they return to the PNC Championship for a second time, having finished tied for seventh place in 2020.
Woods commented, “Although it’s been a long and challenging year, I am very excited to close it out by competing in the PNC Championship with my son Charlie. I’m playing as a Dad and couldn’t be more excited and proud.”
IMG’s Alastair Johnston, the executive chairman of the tournament added, “I am delighted to confirm that Tiger and Charlie Woods will be participating in the 2021 PNC Championship. We have been liaising with Tiger and his team for some time and are delighted that he has now decided to make his return to competitive golf at the PNC Championship.”
The 20-player final field for the 2021 PNC Championship is:
Pro
Bubba Watson Wayne Ball
David Duval Brady Duval
Gary Player Jordan Player
Henrik Stenson Karl Stenson
Jim Furyk Tanner Furyk
John Daly Little John Daly
Justin Thomas Mike Thomas
Lee Trevino Daniel Trevino
Mark O’Meara Shaun O’Meara
Matt Kuchar Cameron Kuchar
Nelly Korda Petr Korda
Nick Faldo Matthew Faldo
Nick Price Greg Price
Padraig Harrington Paddy Harrington
Rich Beem Michael Beem
Stewart Cink Reagan Cink
Tom Lehman Sean Lehman
Tom Watson Michael Watson
Tiger Woods Charlie Woods
Vijay Singh Qass Singh
The tournament, which will be broadcast live on NBC, attracts major champions whose victories this year span from 1959 to 2021, and last year, saw a field gather that had won a remarkable 67 Major titles. With only 20 teams in the field, players past and present have shown unprecedented interest in campaigning for a spot in the star-studded line-up.
Since the inaugural tournament in 1995, when 10 major winners gathered with their sons, the PNC Championship has continued to evolve and develop. It now features 20 major champions and their relatives competing for the total purse of $1,085,000 in a two-day, 36-hole scramble for the Willie Park Trophy. The 2020 edition was won by Justin Thomas and his father, Mike.
The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. has been the title sponsor of the tournament since 2012. The event formerly known as the PNC Father/Son Challenge, was renamed the PNC Championship in 2020 to reflect the high level of competition and field composition, while still celebrating an inclusive family event that showcases the special bonds that the love of golf creates.
To qualify for the PNC Championship, players must have won a major championship or The Players Championship. Their partner must not hold a PGA TOUR card.
The PNC Championship is operated in partnership by IMG and NBC Sports.
Tiger Sure Seems Like He's Prepping For The PNC
/Mark Cannizzaro pieces together the comments and unavoidable sight of Tiger Woods practicing as the Hero World Challenge saw everyone limping home for a break. Except, of course, those playing in this week’s more-intriguing-than-most Shark Shootouts and the following week’s PNC parent-child event.
“Not a doubt in my mind that Tiger is playing the PNC,” Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee said Friday during Golf Central Pregame.
One factor is Woods, who needed surgery to repair a shattered ankle and two leg fractures suffered in a horrific car crash in February, doesn’t have to walk the course like a typical tournament. Also, he would be able to play with his son Charlie.
“Tiger can ride a cart, he can drive up basically to the golf ball and almost onto the green, so the walking might not be as much of a stress on the leg,” fellow Gold Channel analyst Notah Begay III, a friend of Woods and his former teammate at Stanford, said this week. “But also, he can play Charlie’s drives. I covered them for the majority of that event last year, and Charlie was hitting most of the drives because of where his tees are at, and he’s such a good ball-striker that they were taking advantage of his drives because they were much farther than where Tiger’s balls were off the tee. Those are two critical things that I think might factor into him possibly showing up in a couple weeks with Charlie. I know the world would love to see it.”
What Notah says.
Quadrilateral: Major(s) News & Notes, December 2nd, 2021
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Tiger Talks About His Future, St Andrews, Featheries, Saudis And Refers Accident Questions To Sheriff's Report
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A day after an interview by his partners at Golf Digest/Discovery that saw Tiger Woods open up on several topics, he faced questions from assembled scribes in the Bahamas to kick off Hero World Challenge week. As is fairly typical of , Woods avoided any details of his car accident and referred everyone to the police report that was eventually posted by TMZ.
He was again clear about his ability to play at a high level being very much up in the air.
I'll put it to you this way: As far as playing at the Tour level, I don't know when that's going to happen. Now, I'll play a round here or there, a little hit and giggle, I can do something like that. I certainly like -- you know, the USGA suggested Play It Forward. I really like that idea now. I don't like the tees on the back. I like Play It Forward. Come on, let's move it up, let's move it up. To see some of my shots fall out of the sky a lot shorter than they used to is a little eye-opening, but at least I'm able to do it again. That's something that for a while there it didn't look like I was going to. Now I'm able to participate in the sport of golf, now to what level, I do not know that. I'll keep you abreast, all of you abreast as progress continues to go on, whether I'll be out here and at what level and when.
Actually it was Tee it Forward and I believe that one’s ten years old and about 14 slogans ago. Excuse me, brand campaigns. But we get the point.
Q. Tiger, I'm wondering what you remember of the accident. Obviously we all saw the result and it looked so horrifying and scary, and I have a follow up to that.
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, all those answers have been answered in the investigation, so you can read about all that there in the post report.
Short and not very accountable. Would have been nice to say he’s just glad no one else was hurt.
He is out playing golf more than we might have realized:
Q. Have you played golf holes, like a full hole or 18 holes?
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I play full holes, yeah, but not from my tee markers.
As for the pain…
Q. I don't want to get too personal, but what are you experiencing there at the moment, sitting there?
TIGER WOODS: My back hurts and my leg hurts.
He was asked about The Open at St Andrews and gave perhaps my favorite answer regarding the Champions dinner:
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I would love to play at St. Andrews, there's no doubt about it. It's my favorite golf course in the world. To be a two-time Open champion there, just being a part of the champions dinner is really neat. From my first one in '05 I got to attend a champions dinner, it was pretty neat to be a part of. Peter Thomson was still alive, and I sat right next to him and to hear him tell stories of when he came over and he played and shots he played and how he did it, that was awesome. Those are things like at the Masters, those dinners are priceless and those stories and listen to them talk about how they played, when they played it and what they did, it's just an honor to be a part of a room like that. Yes, I would love to be able to play that Open Championship, there's no doubt about it.
Physically, hopefully I can. I've got to get there first. Tournament's not going to go anywhere, but I need to get there.
After mentioning the Par 3 at the Masters he was jokingly asked by AP’s Doug Ferguson about committing to the Par 3 when it returns.
Q. Did you just commit to the par 3?
TIGER WOODS: No. I committed to I can play courses of that length. Now, if the Tour wants to not have golf courses lengthened, they shorten up that much to make it more difficult, that's fine by me, I have no problem with that. If they want to go back to wooden shafts and feathery balls, okay, I'm cool.
Shorter courses and a retro event. What we’ve all wanted! Maybe Jay Monahan can work on that after Tiger gave him this answer to a question about the Greg Norman disruptor league and what players should do.
TIGER WOODS: It's going to be his decision, period. I've decided for myself that I'm supporting the PGA TOUR, that's where my legacy is. I've been fortunate enough to have
won 82 events on this tour and 15 major championships and been a part of the World Golf Championships, the start of them and the end of them. So I have an allegiance to the PGA TOUR.
And I understand that some of the comparisons is very similar to when Arnold and Jack broke off from the PGA of America to start the Tour. I don't see it that way. I think the Tour has done a fantastic job, Jay's done an unbelievable job during a very difficult time during the pandemic when there was ample opportunities for players to leave, but we were the first sporting tour to start.
So with that, yes, did we have some protocol issues at times? Yes, we had to learn on the fly, but Jay and the staff had done an incredible job of that. I think the Tour is in great hands, they're doing fantastic, and prize money's going up. It's just not guaranteed money like most sports are. It's just like tennis, you have to go out there and earn it.
This answer pre-accident would have been huge news. But now that he’s on the Hogan schedule, at best participation in PGA Tour events will be very limited.
Woods also left out the thank you payment he’s receiving from the PIP pool or that he loathes Norman. But do note that he references the “end” of the WGC’s. Better not mention that in May’s WGHOF speech while Tim Finchem is saluted for creating them.
Moving along…more on where he’s at and where’s going. A far more revealing answer about his future:
TIGER WOODS: You made a great point. Am I going to put my family through it again, am I going to put myself out there again. We had a talk within the family, all of us sat down and said if this leg cooperates and I get to a point where I can play the Tour, is it okay with you guys if I try and do it. The consensus was yes.
Now, internally, I haven't reached that point. I haven't proven it to myself that I can do it. I can show up here and I can host an event, I can play a par-3 course, I can hit a few shots, I can chip and putt, but we're talking about going out there and playing against the world's best on the most difficult golf courses under the most difficult conditions. I'm so far from that.
Now, I have a long way to go to get to that point. Now, I haven't decided whether or not I want to get to that point. I've got to get my leg to a point where that decision can be made. And we'll see what happens when I get to that point, but I've got a long way to go with this leg.
This from Golf’s Dylan Dethier was another effort to ask about the accident:
Q. When it comes to the day of the crash, clearly that's something that you're hoping to keep private. Is that something that you feel is sort of your business and not the rest of ours, for lack of a better phrase?
TIGER WOODS: Well, I kind of feel that way with most of my life. Doesn't really work out that way. I understand that it's -- I had friends that insulated me from a lot of the things that were said outside. I didn't have my phone, I didn't have access -- well, I did have access to a TV and I was just watching sports. But I refused to turn on the local channels and news and stuff like that, I didn't want to go down that road. I wasn't mentally ready for that road yet. A lot of things in my body hurt at that time and whether I was on medication or not, it still hurt. And just trying to imagine me coming off of that stuff, how much it was going to hurt, I didn't want to have my mind go there yet, it wasn't ready.
Yeah, people are going to poke and prod and want to know more about my business, I understand that. Just as long as they don't go into -- they can poke and prod at me all they want, just stay away from my family.
Considering the usual interruptions from journalists there to fill seats for the sponsor and the haphazard nature of such press conferences, it was fairly classic Woods session with a few good reveals if you look close enough. More telling may have been the clarity in his voice and eyes and cautious tone from someone who traditionally projects extreme confidence.
Tiger: "I’m just happy to be able to go out there and watch Charlie play, or go in the backyard...just hear the birds chirping."
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Golf Digest’s Henni Koyack was able to coax a lot of lovely stuff from Tiger Woods in his first interview since February’s car accident.
I summed up the best of at The Quadrilateral.
The standout remark regarding his golf:
“I think something that is realistic is playing the Tour one day—never full time, ever again—but pick and choose, just like Mr. (Ben) Hogan did. Pick and choose a few events a year and you play around that,” Woods said during a Zoom interview with Golf Digest’s Henni Koyack from his South Florida home. “You practice around that, and you gear yourself up for that. I think that’s how I’m going to have to play it from now on. It’s an unfortunate reality, but it’s my reality. And I understand it, and I accept it.”
Better than most realities given the injuries he sustained.
The full video here:
PIP: “What they should have done is taken all $40 [million] of it and sent it to Tiger and say, thank you"
/Rex Hoggard looks at the PGA Tour’s Player Impact Program as the exciting, unpredictable season-long race for Meltwater Mentions nears its secretive conclusion. He quotes several players who either do not understand it or care for the program’s secrecy.
“No idea,” Herman laughed when asked to explain how the PIP list is created. “I wish we had a list. I wish we knew, so if a guy is on the list and he’s close and had an idea of what they needed to do to crack the top 10. That’s the hardest part for the rest of us. They are throwing a lot of money out there without a real good understanding of how you can crack the top 10. We feel like it’s a popularity contest.”
According to various sources, the Tour will not show the entire list to players but will tell each player where they are on the list, which only seems to fuel the confusion over how the list is compiled.
And these fellows cut right to the chase:
“It’s a way for Tiger Woods to be rewarded even more for what he’s done for the game of golf,” Chesson Hadley said.
But while every player agrees with Hadley that Woods will be atop the PIP list, it remains unclear how his single-vehicle crash in February and the ensuing media coverage of the accident should be factored into his index score.
Monahan explained at East Lake that the point of the program is to get “players to engage in our game, help grow our Tour, and help grow their own respective brands.” But where exposure ends and controversy begins, is anyone’s guess.
“What they should have done is taken all $40 [million] of it and sent it to Tiger and say, thank you,” Scott Stallings said. “We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him. When he posted that picture of himself on crutches it outperformed the last four tournament winners [on social media]. If he even tried it’s over.”
Tiger: "Making progress"
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A welcome Sunday morning sight from Tiger Woods, recovering from injuries sustained in a February car accident:
It'd Be Great To Hear From Tiger And For Tiger To Hear From Us
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My latest offering at The Quadrilateral about Tiger Woods and how now would be a really, really good time for him to assume his inevitable elder statesman role as pro golf deals with some big ticket items. Plus, he should hear how he's missed and his opinion valued. Because I know he loves this kind of advice, I dancered around the real point of this missive: does Tiger really want Greg Norman shaping pro golf’s future?
Sportico Estimates Highest Paid Athletes Of All Time: Tiger, Arnold, Jack In The Top 4
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Based on inflation adjusted earnings and some guestimating about endorsement income, Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus landed in the top 4 of Sportico’s list of highest paid athletes of all time.
Phil Mickelson landed 11th and Greg Norman 15th. Not bad for a niche sport.
Tiger Spotting: Standing Without Crutches
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While normally I’m not a huge fan of sharing shots showing Tiger on dad duty at a junior golf event, the images posted by Tiger Woods Legion focus mostly on the all-time great and what appears to be major progress since his February car accident. Nice to see. Now, about that growth on his chin…
Tiger's Moving Into The NFT World
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Signed! Digitally…please don’t ask me to explain this, as the whole thing eludes me until someone makes mind-blowing ways to display these things. And even then I’m still not sure…
For Immediate Release:
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Autograph, the company pioneering partnerships with the world's biggest sports and entertainment icons to usher in a new era of digital collecting, will debut the first set of NFTs co-designed by Tiger Woods. The collection will be exclusively available to view on Autograph.io and for sale on DraftKings Marketplace (Nasdaq: DKNG). The NFTs will drop over the next week allowing fans to have longer to access the collectibles with the second collection dropping on September 28th.
"Autograph is thrilled to be the driving force behind the first-ever Tiger Woods NFT as a part of a larger, exclusive series of his digital collections," said Dillon Rosenblatt, CEO and co-founder of Autograph. "Autograph's incredible partners and team are committed to producing cutting-edge content that brings our audience one step closer to icons. Releasing a collection for Tiger Woods, one of the greatest golfers of all time, is a huge milestone as we usher in the new era of collecting."
Tiger's digital collectibles are the latest addition to Autograph's Preseason Access Collection, joining other sports heroes like Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky, Tony Hawk, Derek Jeter, Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles. All prior collections have sold out within minutes, so fans looking to purchase the highly-anticipated Tiger drop are encouraged to join the queues early. The Premier edition drops on September 21st and the Signed edition drops on September 28th, both starting at 3:00pm ET, with queues opening at 2:30pm ET.
"Autograph's team is at the forefront of digital collectibles and enhancing the fan experience around NFTs, and I'm thrilled to be a part of the new era of collecting," said Tiger Woods. "It will enable me to grow closer to my fan base and I'm looking forward to seeing that all fans have the opportunity to participate. I could not be more excited for future drops with Autograph."
While the Premier editions will offer thousands of Tiger's digital collectibles, the Signed editions will have significantly fewer, with less than 300 total in the whole batch. Each owner of a Preseason Access Pass NFT, regardless of edition, will also be granted preferential access to a future NFT drop from Autograph.
To view the latest exclusive NFT drops, collectors can visit https://www.autograph.io and registered DraftKings customers can visit https://marketplace.draftkings.com/ to explore and transact on DraftKings Marketplace.
Oy: Golf Digest Releases Woods Instruction Series Filmed The Day Before His Single-Car Accident
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There are just some pieces of “content” buried in a vault for good reason. You know, because it’s just a little too tough to watch knowing the extended circumstances.
Apparently that status was not given to A Round With Tiger, the “celebrity playing lessons” he was en route to just before crashing and suffering possible career-ending injuries. That was 149 days ago.
Not only is the turnaround time jarringly fast, the whole thing is a cruel reminder we may never see Tiger Woods play golf again because he was in a hurry to a GolfDigest.com “content” shoot. I know they’re paying him a lot and spent a lot on the production to get these A(ish)-listers down to Palos Verdes, but is it really so much that Discovery wanted to potentially remind us they inadvertently were part of this dark chapter in Woods’ life?
Apparently so. Because in a press release they noted Tiger’s approval as if to say, we know this is slimy but hey, Tiger’s cool with it.
Today, Discovery’s Golf Digest debuts A Round with Tiger: Celebrity Playing Lessons, an exclusive four-episode series starring global sports icon Tiger Woods that unveils a different side of one of the greatest athletes to ever live. The Peter Berg-directed series shows a relaxed Tiger engaging with his celebrity friends and sharing their perspectives on life, fatherhood and golf.
The content was captured in February, the day before Tiger had his unfortunate car accident, from which he is still recovering. With this knowledge, the deep and poignant conversations will undoubtedly resonate even more strongly with viewers.
Or creep them out.
The series is being released with the blessing of Tiger and his guests. Discovery and Golf Digest thank everyone for their involvement and wish Tiger a continued speedy recovery.
Well at least he didn’t issue a quote written by Steiny’s best summer intern. Wait, what?
“Shooting this series was some of the most fun I’ve ever had filming on the golf course,” said Woods.
Right.
“Each guest brought a unique perspective on life, both professionally and personally. I’m always inspired by others who are considered the best at what they do and learning about how they made it to the top.
Now that is some serious, Grade A, First Team, All-American BS.
“I was pleasantly surprised by Jada and David’s golf games, and Dwyane, who just picked up the game, made a lot of progress in the time we spent together. Each episode provides something that everyone can enjoy and learn from, so I’m happy to share these lessons and conversations with the world.
…“It is always a privilege for our team to work with Tiger and we’re excited to have these special guests come together to create this unique series, which so perfectly blends golf and life,” said Chris Reynolds, General Manager, Golf Digest.
Well it certainly blended in real life, just not the kind anyone wants to think about.
“The teams at Discovery and Golf Digest have built such a close relationship with Tiger over the years,
So, so, soooooooo close! Like that time Steiny threatened to…oh this is not the time.
and this resulted in some of the most enlightening, engaging content we’ve ever shot. We thank Tiger for allowing us to move forward in producing this series even after his accident and wish him a continued speedy recovery.”
Good. Grief. What an embarrassment.
Even the website description is horrifying:
Tiger Woods invites a group of celebrity guests for one-on-one playing lessons at Rolling Hills CC outside Los Angeles—and you, the viewer, are along for the ride.
I’d stay away from driving references for like, a thousand years.
The conversations between Tiger and his guests are funny and enlightening, heartfelt and inspiring, and cover the gamut from golf tips and life-on-Tour secrets to child rearing and favorite foods. Directed by famed Hollywood director Peter Berg (who appears frequently throughout),
Famed!
this program shows a relaxed, intimate side of Tiger as he spends time with some of his favorite actors and athletes in a place they all love: the golf course.
More like, as he fulfills an obligation in his lucrative deal. And now you, too, can watch this macabre reminder of what happened the next day.
Actually, I’d much rather watch Tiger Woods play golf again. This “content” is not the next best thing.
Tiger's Goal: "Walking on my own."
/GolfDigest.com’s Daniel Rapaport interviewed Tiger Woods in what I believe is the first post-accident chat with a media member.
The most sobering quote:
Asked about his hopes of playing golf again, Woods had no comment, but said, “My physical therapy has been keeping me busy. I do my routines every day and am focused on my No. 1 goal right now: walking on my own. Taking it one step at a time.”
