Tiger Woods to come to Oz

Tiger Woods will play in the Australian Open this year in Victoria.  He will be paid $4.5 million for his 3 day effort half of which will be subscribed by the Australian taxpaper.  This is his appearance fee and ignores possible winnings. The event will be held at Kingston Heath and I am already waitlisted for tickets in November.  If I am to be consistent with my judgement on the use of public funds to promote sporting events - I recently attacked Victoria's $47 million payment to a certain dwarfish Grand Prix operator - I should condemn the $2.25 million the public is coffing up for Woods.  I do condemn it - though weakly.  The reasons for my weaker condemnation of the Woods subsidy are that (i) $2-25 million is a lot less than $47 million and (ii) it might indeed be a good deal for Victoria - though the promised $19 million benefit that the Labor Party suggests will eventuate is out there in fairyland.  The benefit will be less than that.  Woods is absolutely numero uno in the world of modern golf and this is the major participant sport on earth.  He is not some racing-car-driving bogan but a gentleman who plays excellent golf.

I assume the PGA are coffing up the other half of the appearance fee. That's a big ask. I hope they do not get seriously into the red on this one.

Woods is a freak. He is the greatest golfer of his generation and, as I have suggested before on this blog, a wonderful person.  A guy with soul and feeling who can play golf with demonaic precision.  I can hardly wait!

Victoria is again seen as the sporting centre of Australia with NSW a distant second. Indeed Woods will not play in the Australian Open held in NSW shortly after the Masters - his appearance at the Masters will drain resources and crowds from the now much less interesting NSW event.  NSW do have Brian Eno to lead the 3 week music festival in Sydney and this should help the no-hopers running that state secure a few Mardi Gras votes. Prejudiced? No, not me.