Charlie Woods ought to have been granted an exemption to the Cognizant Classic as a….
There are situations when the proverb “the apple doesn’t fall from the tree” is true. Ask Tiger Woods’ son Charlie Woods. In an effort to secure a berth in the Monday qualifier for this week’s Cognizant Classic at PGA National, the 15-year-old high school freshman participated in his first PGA Tour pre-qualifier last Thursday. Outperformed, he posted a 16-over 86, tied for 110th place out of the 112 players who had entered, 21 strokes down leader Billy Basham. Did we anticipate more? Should we have, if the answer is yes? Both his age and his competitive event experience are lacking.
Charlie Woods has never participated in an American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) competition, and just because his father is regarded as the greatest golfer of all time does not guarantee that the younger Woods has absorbed his father’s skill set in full. However, I believe that Cognizant ought to have granted Woods one of its sponsor exemptions during its inaugural event sponsorship on the PGA Tour. To even suggest that Woods should receive such a golden ticket after scoring 86 in a pre-qualifier may be seen by some as sacrilege. A brief history lesson:
After leading the Washington Redskins to victory over the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVI in 1992, Mark Rypien became the most sought-after athlete in the Washington region and was named MVP of the game. Four months later, the PGA Tour made an appearance in the area, and Rypien’s request to participate in the May PGA Tour event in the D.C. area was granted by the tournament’s then-general chairman. “I was happy to give him an exemption into the main field when he requested to play in the Kemper Open,” Ben Brundred Jr. said to the Washington Times. “Fans and players will enjoy his participation.”Naturally, the payouts were far smaller then than they are now; for example, the 1992 Kemper offered a $1.1 million, and the winner, Bill Glasson, took home $198,000. Rypien fulfilled Brundred’s desire for him to try his hardest to increase fan interest and participation.
