POTOMAC, Md. — Tiger Woods said Wednesday the uncertain future of the Quicken Loans National is frustrating for both his charitable foundation and the Washington golf community.
Woods and his TGR Foundation created the National in 2007, and it has been played most years in Maryland and northern Virginia.
“The (local) support has been fantastic. It’s just that we haven’t got the sponsorship dollars,” Woods said after his practice round Wednesday. “This is a tough climate right now. To ask a company for $7, 8, 9 million is tough.”
The PGA Tour opted last fall to cancel an agreement to hold the tournament at Congressional Country Club in 2018 and 2020 because there was no title sponsor on board at the time. Quicken Loans, the sponsor from 2014 to 2017, signed a one-year deal in May to return as title sponsor.
Woods called Washington “a great sporting town” and had praise for TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm, the course in Montgomery County playing host to The National for the second straight year.
“We could have it here every year, and that’s not very difficult to do,” Woods said. “But it’s trying to get the sponsorship dollars and that kind of commitment going forward that’s the more difficult challenge. We’re certainly going to give our best efforts, but the future’s unknown.”
“That’s frustrating for all of us. Not just here at the foundation and what we do, but it’s also frustrating for the community here that have supported us and supported this event. The D.C. area really wants to have a golf tournament each and every year.”
Woods will be personally involved with finding a future home for The National, he said, but a sponsor likely has to sign on before the future location of the tournament can be determined. Quicken Loans will sponsor a new Detroit-based Tour stop starting in 2019.
Due to the instability and some upcoming schedule shifts, there’s also the danger that the National will be removed from the PGA Tour.
Woods will play The National this week for the first time since 2015, and it is his first time playing TPC Potomac in an event.
He called TPC Potomac “one heck of a golf course” that was more difficult than he expected, with tall, punitive rough.
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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