“Tiger isn’t going to get a decrease” – Jay Monahan on whether Tiger Woods will be docked PIP money for missing events
“Tiger isn’t going to get a decrease” – Jay Monahan on whether Tiger Woods will be docked PIP money for missing events
Is Tiger Woods exempt from the PGA Tour’s Player Impact Program rules? It sure feels so.
PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan on Monday announced that Tiger Woods’ limited schedule ideally would not impact his bonus money. It is pertinent to note that Monahan, in August, had announced that the circuit’s top players would have to commit to 13 designated events as part of the Player Impact Program. According to him, golfers would only be allowed to skip one of the events.
However, owing to his fitness, Woods is set to skip several of the scheduled events. The two-time PIP champion is unlikely to play any of the events with elevated purses between $15 million and $25 million. Now, Monahan has come out to state that the golfer won’t have a “decrease” in his bonus money due to his shorter schedule.
Speaking during a media roundtable on Sunday at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, Monahan said:
“Tiger isn’t going to get a decrease. I think it’s hard for me to say what’s going to happen until it actually happens, OK? But I don’t see that happening.”
Monahan’s response is bound to create some confusion among the remaining players. Woods being eligible for bonus money without playing most events would likely lead to several golfers wanting to skip more than one event.
It is pertinent to note that World No.1 Rory McIlroy has already taken his ‘one skip’ option and passed on the first designated event in Hawaii. A media person at the event asked Monahan what would happen if the Irishman skipped another event this year. Responding to this, the PGA Tour Commissioner said that the elevated events are “something we haven’t done before” and it would be dealt with along the way.
“Again, I think when that happens you would go… Guys are going to play the events. So that’s the policy. I have discretion, OK? This is something we haven’t done before. So ultimately, if that happens, then that’s, going back to your earlier question, at the end of the day, I’ll work with our team, I’ll understand the situation, and we’ll make a decision.”
The PGA Tour Commissioner’s answer makes way for more questions. The uncertainty over the rules of a player missing events proves that the Tour is making up the rules as it goes along. It goes without saying that Tiger Woods is the American circuit’s biggest player and they might make exceptions for him.
Tiger Woods spent most of 2022 in recovery. The ace golfer sunk to a new career-low in the world rankings. Despite the lack of game time and a fall in rankings, Woods still managed to top the 2022 Player Impact Program. The golfer beat Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth to become the highest-earning names in the lucrative bonus pool.
Winning the PIP for a second consecutive year, Woods claimed the $15 million prize. Meanwhile, McIlroy, who won the FedEx Cup title and the Harry Vardon Trophy, settled for a runners-up paycheck of $12 million.
