|
The tournament, which will be played at Riviera
Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif., near Los Angeles, is
the first he has announced on his 2020 schedule. Previously
known as the Genesis Open, its status has been elevated by
cutting the field from 144 to 120 players with a hike in prize
money from $7.4 million to $9.3 million.
The winner of the event will receive a three-year PGA Tour
exemption instead of the usual two.
With the tourney's status falling in line with events attached
to two of the game's legendary players -- the Arnold Palmer
Invitational and the Jack Nicklaus-hosted Memorial Tournament,
Woods is pleased with the distinction.
"It's an honor for us to be in the same category as Jack
Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer," Woods said in a statement. "Those
are two legends of the game. For us to have that type of
elevation, all the things we want to have happen for the
tournament are going to happen."
Woods, a Southern California native, did not play in the PGA
Tour's Los Angeles-area event from 2007-2017, and he has never
won at Riviera in 13 attempts. He tied for 15th last season,
when J.B. Holmes erased a 4-shot deficit going into the final
round to earn his fifth career PGA Tour victory.
Woods, 43, tied Sam Snead's PGA Tour record of 82 career titles
by winning the inaugural ZOZO Championship in Japan late last
month. It's not known if The Genesis Invitational will be Woods'
first chance to break the record. He often opens his PGA Tour
golfing calendar at the Farmers Insurance Open in late January
at Torrey Pines in La Jolla, Calif.
--Field Level Media
[© 2019 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2019 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
 |
|
