The team of Cameron Smith and Jonas Blixt this morning won a four-hole playoff to capture the PGA Tour Zurich Classic of New Orleans, and the event, which debuted a new two-man team format, was "nothing short of a rousing success," according to Jeff Duncan of the New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE. Official attendance totals for the tourney are not yet available, but "anecdotal evidence suggests the crowds were the biggest in years, maybe ever." Fore!Kids Foundation CEO Steve Worthy, whose organization runs the tournament, said, "Our Thursday (crowd) was a typical Saturday, our Friday (crowd) was a typical Sunday, and our Saturday (crowd) was a record." Worthy also estimated the Saturday crowd at "around 25,000." Duncan notes the event "enjoyed unprecedented exposure, a star-studded field and one of the most dramatic finishes in the tournament's history" after Kevin Kisner holed out for eagle Sunday to force the playoff. The team format "was a hit," as players and media "enjoyed the break in routine from traditional stroke play." Fans "ate up the unique strategy inherent in alternate shot and best ball play," and sponsors and tournament officials "basked in the packed crowds and national exposure." Worthy added, "The player reaction has been off-the-charts good. Every single one talked about how much fun they had and how they can't to come back again next year." He added, "You take on something like this and you're never really sure how it's going to go. We felt like it would be an improvement and add some energy. But with pretty high expectations it's exceeded everything we had hoped" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 5/1). In Baton Rouge, Brian Allee-Walsh notes the inclement weather that resulted in a six-hour rain delay "kept the turnstile count down yesterday." However, tournament officials already had "deemed this year's new 72-hole format a success based on the depth of field, star power, turnstile count and favorable TV ratings." Worthy said that he "plans to huddle with officials from the PGA Tour and Zurich in the coming weeks to critique this year's tournament and explore ways to improve the product going forward" (Baton Rouge ADVOCATE, 5/1).
POSITIVE REVIEWS COMING IN: GOLFCHANNEL.com's Rex Hoggard wrote the tourney "proved to be the breath of fresh air many believed it would become." The team format drew the "best field in years to the New Orleans PGA Tour stop and was a break from the norm during a portion of the schedule that is often an afterthought" (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 4/30). SI.com writer Alan Shipnuck wrote the event "was a blast and the strong field, big crowds and overall enthusiasm for the whole thing will hopefully spur other events to think more creatively" (GOLF.com, 4/30).
