“I burned a tycoon for free”… Woods and Genesis competition 4 years bad performance

Hyundai Motor Company was the title sponsor of the PGA Tour Tournament of Champions in Hawaii until 2016. The previous sponsor was Mercedes-Benz, so it wasn’t bad in the image for Hyundai to connect it. However, as a sponsor, the cost-performance ratio was not high.

It was held in the first week of January during the holiday season, and there was little interest, and the name of the title sponsor is hidden by the traditional name of’Winners’ Competition. Above all, Tiger Woods wasn’t participating, so the media was grim.

In 2017, Hyundai moved to the LA Open (now Genesis Invitational) held at the Riviera Golf Course near Los Angeles. It is based in the metropolis of Los Angeles, has a 95-year tradition, and is held on a prestigious course called the Riviera. The level of participating players is also high. The modern brand exposure was much greater than the Hawaiian competition.

Tiger Woods is related to this competition. Growing up in Los Angeles, he and his father attended this competition from an early age. In 1992, the first PGA Tour event as a 16-year-old amateur was the LA Open. At the time, he said, “This is not a major competition like the Masters or the US Open, but I think so.”

Woods has not participated in the competition since 2006, when his father died. Then, I came to the venue from 2017. This is because, after Hyundai Motor Company took over as a sponsor, his charity foundation in Los Angeles took over the operation of Genesis Open. For Woods, it became a must-see contest because of the charity foundation.

The Genesis Open was upgraded to an invitational-level competition in 2020, and the name was changed to the Genesis Invitational. It was a big hit for Hyundai.

The reason why the competition has risen is because of Tiger Woods. The PGA Tour gives special qualifications to competitions involving legendary players. A memorial hosted by Jack Nicklaus and the Arnold Palmer Invitational, created by the late Arnold Palmer, are such competitions. The PGA Tour recognized the Genesis Competition as a Woods Competition and raised the rank.

Woods said at the convention hall, “There is no better place than here, where I grew up and participated in my first competition.” Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Eui-Sun Eui said, “I am proud to lead the Genesis Open to a further advanced event through partnerships with Tiger Woods and the Woods Foundation and PGA Tour.”

On the PGA Tour, the winner of the general competition is given two years, three years for the invitational competition, and five years for the major competitions. Athletes regard Nicklaus’ memorial and the Genesis Invitational hosted by Woods as the second most important event after the majors.

After becoming the invitational competition, Hyundai Motor Company raised the prize money by $1.9 million from $7.4 million to $9.3 million. However, it’s a decent investment considering you’re in a boat with Tiger Woods.

Inviting Woods alone costs $3 million. The equation’Genesys Invitational = Tiger Woods Competition’ was created to completely boost the halo of Woods, so it meant that the best star for Hyundai Motor Company was put on Genesis for almost free. There was also an evaluation that the image of Genesis was unknowingly improved.

However, burning a tycoon isn’t always good. The LA Open was the competition that Woods wanted to win the most, but unlike Woods, he never won. Even after Hyundai Motor Company took over as a sponsor, Woods was only absent (back surgery)-cut out-joint 15th-68th place-absent (back surgery). The bad relationship between the tournament and Woods led to a serious injury while riding the Genesis SUV.

The police’s remarks, “I’m glad I survived (from such a big accident)” is a great help to Hyundai. There was also an image that Genesis is a safe car. Local police are weighing the driver’s speed.

However, you should also look at the results of the accident investigation, such as whether the safety devices were working properly. Because Woods, the driver, is so big, the road ahead of Genesis, which carried him, is likely to fluctuate together according to the results of the investigation.

Hojun Sung Golf Reporter
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