$9m Woods event earns its stripes
TIGER Woods’s US PGA tournament would have a bigger purse, greater prestige, invitational status and a new name for next year, organisers announced yesterday.
The Genesis Invitational, hosted by Woods at Riviera Country Club next February 13-16, will have an invite-only field of 120 players competing for a $US9.3 million purse, a boost of $1.9 million from this year’s event.
The winner will take home $1.674 million as well as a three-year PGA Tour exemption, one year longer than the standard winner’s exemption for tour events.
Woods’s event exemption matches those of the Memorial, a key US Open tune-up event hosted by Jack Nicklaus, and the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in March.
Reigning Masters champion Woods, 43, has won 15 major titles, three shy of the record 18 captured by Nicklaus.
His victory this year at Augusta National snapped a major win drought dating to the 2008 US Open.
Woods has 81 career US PGA titles, one shy of the record set by Sam Snead.
The Riviera tournament remains a benefit event for his charity work through his TGR Foundation. ASHLEIGH ASHL Barty has been named the top seed for the Canadian Open, while Rafael Nadal is the top seed for the men’s event in Montreal.
The Australian will be competing for the second time since she became world No.1, her fourth-round loss at Wimbledon the first time at the top.
Barty made a solid run into the semi-finals at last year’s event before falling to eventual champion Simona Halep 6-4, 6-1.
The Australian has three titles this year, including her first grand slam at the French Open.
Naomi Osaka, of Japan, will be the second seed in Toronto, followed by Karolina Pliskova, of the Czech Republic.
In the men’s competition, Nadal is the highest-ranked player in the field at No.2 and will be only member of the men’s “big three” to play in Montreal. Top-ranked Novak Djokovic withdrew from the tournament last week, and Roger Federer pulled out soon after he lost to Djokovic in five gruelling sets in the Wimbledon final.
It leaves world No.4 Dominic Thiem, of Austria, as the second seed. Nadal, of Spain, is a four-time Rogers Cup champion.
The main draw for each will begin next week.