Saudi Arabia: Tiger Turns Down Massive Overseas Appearance Fee

A much deserved narrative is forming as Tiger Woods reportedly joins Roger Federer in passing on a huge Saudi Arabia appearance fee, reports the Telegraph’s James Corrigan. The inaugural European Tour event, already on the ropes even before Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, is to be played Jan 31-February 3rd, the week after the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.

Yet it is understood he deemed Saudi Arabia to be an excursion too far - even for at least £2.5m - an amount that apparently dwarfs anything he has received before for an official overseas tournament.

Sources say he was first approached in the summer, after his dramatic competitive resurrection at the Open, where he led going into the last nine before finishing sixth, and then at the USPGA Championship, where he finished second.

By then the Kingdom had already signed up Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Paul Casey to play in the government-sponsored event, which has become even more controversial since last month's pre-meditated killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Arabia Embassy in Istanbul.