Wednesday, November 29, 2000
Tiger meets with Finchem over marketing
issues
By DOUG FERGUSON
AP Golf Writer
Tiger Woods and PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem took the first
step toward resolving a dispute over marketing rights by meeting
in Los Angeles, and both expressed confidence they could work
together.
Woods, the No. 1 player in the world and largely responsible for
an enormous boost in golf's popularity, stunned PGA Tour officials
earlier this month when he said the tour was taking financial
advantage of him with policies that controlled his rights.
He also said Finchem only talked to him when the commissioner
wanted Woods to play in a particular tournament.
They met Monday and discussed player marketing rights, commercial
use of player images and the Internet.
Woods said he also reassured Finchem that his objectives have
nothing to do with getting a share of the next four-year TV contract,
which will be negotiated next year.
“It was important for us to meet face-to-face to gain a clearer
understand of each other's business objectives,” Woods said
in a statement released by the PGA Tour.
Finchem said he was pleased with the positive tone of the meeting.
“I'm delighted we're discussing the specifics of his business
strategy, because a significant mission of the tour is to provide
our members with a strong marketing platform,” Finchem said
in the statement.
They said the dialogue would continue, and were confident that
Woods' business objectives and those of the PGA Tour are compatible.
Woods had a news conference scheduled for 5:30 p.m. EST at his
Williams World Challenge in Thousand Oaks, Calif. But his agent,
Mark Steinberg of IMG, said there would be no further comment
on the meeting with Finchem.
Still, the fact both sides acknowledged the meeting — and
agreed to issue a joint statement — was a sign that a compromise
could occur soon, especially in light of how upset Woods had been
with the tour.
He first vented his frustrations to Golf World magazine in its
Nov. 10 issue. When asked how serious the conflict was, Woods
said, “Serious enough that if we don't make everyone aware
of it now, it could escalate into a bigger situation.”
Among his concerns:
— Implied endorsements, where PGA Tour sponsors were able
to use Woods' and other players' images in advertisements.
— Rights fees, in which ABC Sports had to pay the tour $400,000
to televise Woods' exhibition match against David Duval last year.
When Woods set up another made-for-TV match against Sergio Garcia
this year, the fee was raised to $1.5 million.
— Interactive media. This involves Woods getting back all
of his rights, some of which the PGA Tour owns became Woods is
a member. This would enable Woods to explore several untapped
areas involving the Internet.
“We're just wanting to get our rights back, and not having
these implied endorsements,” Woods told The Associated Press
during the season-ending tournament in Spain. “It's not about
getting a cut of the TV revenue. It's about doing what's right
by the players.”
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