U.S. Open winner Justin Rose will be "making the switch to Tiger Woods' agent, Mark Steinberg" and Excel Sports Management, according to sources cited by Tim Rosaforte of GOLF DIGEST. Sources said that Rose was "talking to Steinberg three weeks ago" at the PGA Tour's Memorial Tournament. They also had a "private discussion" prior to the opening round. Rose had "been represented by Marcus Day of 4Sports & Entertainment." Since winning the Open last week, Rose's marketability has "skyrocketed." Rose recently has been "in a secondary commercial role to Dustin Johnson and Sergio Garcia" for TaylorMade, but that "should change, along with his entire profile." Other sponsors of Rose include Zurich, Ashworth, British Airways, adidas, Jumeriah Golf Estates and U.K. estate Goodwood. Since leaving IMG in July '11, Steinberg has "assembled an impressive client list" in Matt Kuchar and now Rose. That gives him the "current Nos. 1, 3 and 5" golfers in the world. (GOLFDIGEST.com, 6/20). Rose said Thursday following his opening round at the PGA Tour Travelers Championship, “The timing is kind of ironic, I suppose, with everything that’s happened. But it’s a decision I made quite some time ago and things take some time to figure themselves out.” GOLF WEEK's Jim McCabe noted although Switzerland-based 4Sports' "stable of athletes includes other golfers ... mostly the agency is known for its representation of professional hockey players, many of them European." Rose reportedly was "looking to enhance marketing opportunities and thinks he will get that opportunity with Excel. Rose: "With me playing so much here in the States and where I felt my game was going, I just felt it was a decision I wanted to make to move on" (GOLFWEEK.com, 6/20).
IN GOOD HANDS: Golfer Rich Beem said Rose joining Steinberg is "actually probably a very smart decision." Beem: "Steinberg knows what to do. He knows how to handle it, he knows what's going to come. He knows how to prepare Justin for what's going to come down the pipeline." Beem continued, "As a first-time major champion, if you don’t have somebody in your corner to kind of tell you what's going to happen ... then you're doing yourself a disservice." Golfweek's Jeff Rude said it is not a risky move because Steinberg "knows how to do his job." Rude: "He's made Tiger Woods a gazillion dollars over the years" ("19th Hole," Golf Channel, 6/20).
