Golf

Chrysler indeed one of the very lucky

By Times Staff
Published January 17, 2006

PALM HARBOR - The timing turned out to be a coincidence. Long ago, the Chrysler Championship had picked Monday to be the date for its annual charity check presentation. But developments last week helped turn the day into a celebration of the future as well.

While more than $2.6-million was being doled out to local charities, the tournament could also boast about what is ahead, a March date beginning in 2007 - or just 14 months from now.

But Monday's occasion could just as easily been a somber one.

Those in the know realize how fortunate the Chrysler Championship - or whatever it might be called in the future if a new title sponsor is necessary - is today.

There are a bunch of other tournaments still trying to recover after the 2007 FedEx Cup schedule was announced last week. For them, the news was not good.

The Canadian Open, a national championship that has been around for 100 years, will get a date the week after the British Open. And if that is not bad enough, it will precede by one week a World Golf Championship event and by two weeks the PGA Championship. That will all but assure none of the top players will be in Canada.

Then there is the Booz Allen Classic and Buick Championship. Both have years of history behind them. The Booz Allen dates to 1968 and has been played in the Washington, D.C., area since 1980. But it does not have a place in the new schedule and will have to take a fall date to even exist. The Buick Championship is the former Greater Hartford Open, which began in 1952. It, too, is likely relegated to the fall.

The U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee will be played opposite the British Open. The Houston Open, although it was not happy with its mid April dates, is now the week before the Masters, following four strong events in Florida. The Byron Nelson Championship and Colonial, 30 miles apart and played back to back, have been split up. In fact, Texas has four tournaments, none played together.

Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay area, which did not even have a full-field PGA Tour event when the decade began, is now sitting pretty in the middle of the Florida swing.

"They have done a wonderful job of positioning the event and growing it," said PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem .

"It shows that if you have a good organization, a good golf course and a willingness to work hard, you can put together a good event."

The Copperhead course at Innisbrook is a strong draw, one that tour officials undoubtedly took into consideration when awarding the March date to the tournament. The fact that officials did so with sponsor uncertainty speaks volumes about their faith in the tournament and the area.

You could argue that the tour had little choice, that it had to replace the Players Championship with another Florida event. But the tour could have gone another route. It could have played just three tournaments in Florida. It could have left Honda, Bay Hill and Doral alone, and put Houston or New Orleans at the end of March.

It didn't, and Tampa Bay emerges as one of the biggest winners in the new PGA Tour schedule.

CHARITY CONTRIBUTION: The Chrysler Championship presented a record $2.61-million to local charities, up from $1.26-million last year. According to the tournament, the donation is among the seven largest on the PGA Tour in 2005 and the highest of any PGA event in Florida, including the Players Championship.

The tournament's primary beneficiary received $150,000. But more than 150 other local charities shared in more than $2-million raised through the tournament's Birdies for Charities program. Any nonprofit organization can obtain pledges based on the number of birdies made during the tournament and gets to keep all of the money pledged. Then, based on performance, those charities can take part in a bonus pool put up by the tournament that was more than $400,000.

OUTBACK PRO-AM: The Champions Tour event next month at the TPC of Tampa Bay has yet to announce any official commitments, but expects to have a strong group of senior stars, including defending champion Hale Irwin and Greg Norman .

The Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am is Feb. 24-26 and various ticket packages are on sale at www.outbackproam.com or by calling 813 265-4653.

[Last modified January 17, 2006, 01:25:19]