World Challenge Special

So'long to Sherwood

The Tiger Woods Foundation World Challenge began its life at Greyhawk Golf Club in Arizona in 1999, it was the last tournament of 1999 and the first of 2000 as it was played from Wednesday 29 December to Sunday 2 January. The event featured 18 of the world's best golfers competing for a then massive sum of $3.5million and $1million first prize. Uniquely the event featured a pro-am after the second round, played on New Year's Eve. Tom Lehman came out on top and the tournament was off and running as one of the leading off-season events in the United States. It is believed the event was conceived by Tiger Woods and his team when he played in the 1997 Nedbank Million Dollar Challenge at Sun City in South Africa. In 2000 the event moved to Sherwood Country Club as part of the Tiger Woods Foundation plan to launch a Tiger Woods Learning Center outside of Los Angeles, near where Woods was born and raised.

Sherwood Country Club was established as a private community in 1984 and the Jack Nicklaus designed golf course was opened in 1989. It hosted one of the modern incarnations of made-for-television golf, 'The Showdown at Sherwood' between Tiger and David Duval took place in August 1999 and was a match between the world number one and two. 'Monday Night Golf' then moved to the desert and the country club was available to be used by the Tiger Woods Foundation. 

The tournament moved then from its New Year slot to the first week of December, closer to the end of the PGA Tour season and allowing more off-time before the start of the new season for those who were invited to compete. The field was 12 players and the title was lifted by Davis Love III.

Tiger's Tourney at Sherwood has become somewhat of a pre-Christmas golfing tradition and with the allocation of official world golf ranking points over the last five years it has established itself as a big end of year event, potentially critical to exemptions to majors and world golf championships. One such example is in 2009 when Tiger withdrew from the tournament due to his personal issues, meaning Graeme McDowell got into the event, his performance saw him sneak into the world's top fifty and from there he went on to qualify for and win the 2010 US Open.

It was announced a short time ago by the Tiger Woods Foundation that the tournament will be moving to Isleworth Country Club in Orlando, Florida in 2014 so this year will be the last edition played at Sherwood. I for one will miss the end of year event being played there because the course is more old style and presents challenges not seen on many other courses used on tour. It makes a change to see the best players in the world having to create shots and play into smaller greens, Isleworth is vastly different from Sherwood and the level of entertainment will surely not be as great.

Let's hope the stellar field assembled this weekend in SoCal can give Sherwood the send-off it deserves.

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