Tiger Woods is competing in the PGA Tour Valspar Championship for the first time in his career, and tournament officials are "doing everything they can to accommodate crowds of perhaps 30,000 or more each day," according to Rodney Page of the TAMPA BAY TIMES. The event starts Thursday, and there have been 10,000 "extra parking spots added at two off course sites." There were 70 "extra port-o-lets added when Rory McIlroy committed, then an extra 90 above that when Woods committed on Friday." An eighth admission gate "was added and 30 extra buses were hired to shuttle fans in and out." The stakes and ropes were "altered on eight different holes for extra viewing," and a wooden platform next to the bridge on the 12th hole "was added" yesterday. Tournament Dir Tracy West said, "This will be an elite event among the non-major tournaments this year. It could be in the top five attended tournaments aside from the majors. I expect there could be more than 150,000 here (for all four days)" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 3/6). Acknowledging the "excitement that crowds could potentially sell out the venue, West remained cognizant of the potential for rowdy Tour crowds like those that have come under scrutiny in recent weeks." West: "We're not the Phoenix Open. ... We don't want to turn people away. However, we don't want to make this something that gets out of control, and we'll make some judgment calls" (GOLF.com, 3/2). GOLFWEEK's Brently Romine noted the Valspar Championship has arguably its "strongest field since debuting as a regular PGA Tour stop in 2000," with major winners Jordan Spieth, Sergio Garcia and Henrik Stenson joining Woods and McIlroy (GOLFWEEK.com, 3/5).
STILL THE MAIN DRAW: In Tampa, Tom Jones wrote Woods "remains as popular as ever." This year, the "two highest TV ratings for golf tournaments are the two tournaments in which Tiger made the cut." Former CBS Sports President Neal Pilson said, "He may be the biggest name in sports, matched only by Michael Jordan and Muhammad Ali. Does he still move the needle? The answer is yes. When he plays, the networks are going to give him coverage. And the fact is the public wants to see that coverage" (TAMPABAY.com, 3/3).
