Australian resort owner doesn’t want Tiger Woods at his tournament because he apparently hates money

If there is one thing people in the golf world know, it’s that including the words “Tiger Woods” into anything will get eyeballs on your craft. A party, a golf tournament or even a measly blog post, Tiger is THE guy in the game to create buzz and it still isn’t even close (sorry Rory McIlroy).

But don’t tell that to Australian golf resort owner Clive Palmer. The billionaire who owns the Palmer Coolum Resort is hoping to keep the Australian PGA Championship at his venue after 10 straight years but said there is one person he doesn’t want to attend. Who would that be? Well Tiger Woods of course!

Via an interview with The Australian …

“Tiger Woods isn’t the No 1 golfer in the world any more,” Palmer said. “We don’t want to look backwards, we want to look forwards. So why would you get Tiger Woods here? I would prefer to have Peter Senior than Tiger Woods.

“I am sure Peter Senior could beat Tiger Woods on a good day. I am sure he could.

“Tiger Woods has improved a lot but he’s an emotional wreck and he’s not a good example for kids, anyway.”

OK, so you’re probably scratching your head right now so let me help you out and explain that Peter Senior is, in fact, a senior golfer, coming in at the ripe age of 53 but is still a pretty darn good golfer. He won this event back in 2010 (you were probably glued to your TV), and just last week he reigned supreme at the Australian Open, becoming the oldest ever to win that event.

[More golf: Oakley sues Rory McIlroy and Nike over breach of contract]

But shockingly, Peter Senior is no Tiger Woods. He has won four European Tour titles in his career, with the last coming in 1992 (Tiger was about to turn 17 years old), and he has just two top 10s in his 40-year career at major championships. (Woods has, well, a more polished record at those events.) But this is not a knock on Senior. He’s an incredible talent that can still golf his ball well into his 50s. This is, however, a knock at Palmer, who obviously doesn’t want to generate buzz at his event.

Woods played in the Australian Open a year ago and it was a televised event here in the United States that had reporters rushing Down Under to cover whatever Tiger might do. This year, with Tiger not in the field? It was hardly a blip on the screen.

Maybe you don’t agree with what he did in his personal life a couple of years ago, or you don’t like some of his antics or choice words when the ball doesn’t go where he wants it to, but to doubt what Woods could do to your tournament, and what he still can do with his golf game, is shortsighted and just bad business. And to think I never thought I’d tell a billionaire how to be successful!

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