---

Just how big of a draw is Tiger Woods?

If he wins another major this year and plays in the PGA Grand Slam in October, Bermuda can expect crowds of up to 15,000 people on the refurbished Port Royal Golf Course.

Roddy Carr, Bermuda's tourism golf consultant, said Port Royal would be open for business on a limited basis as of June 1.

He said the new course would be Bermuda's longest at around 6,800 yards.

Carr said part of the reason the Grand Slam is being held at Port Royal was to showcase it to a wide audience so that Bermuda can increase the number of tourists and cash flow that comes to the island.

He said: "Even without Tiger it's fantastic value and it will be showcased around the world."

He said the goal is to increase tourist spending on golf from $19 million to $40 million within a five-year period.

"Mid Ocean, Tuckers Point, Fairmont - all of those courses are being completely refurbished and the jewel of the crown will now be refurbished, which will be seen by 140 million people at the end of this year on television."

Leon Nearon, who was announced as the new chairman of the Grand Slam of Golf committee, said it goes without saying to have Tiger in Bermuda.

"If we were fortunate enough to get Tiger here, it would be a tremendous boost to the Grand Slam."

Nearon added he's already had discussions with his committee on how to cope with the crush of people who would show up to watch the world's greatest golfer play.

"The PGA has told us that wherever Tiger is in the mix, you're looking at a 35 to 40 per cent increase in everything," according to Premier Ewart Brown, who is also Tourism Minister. "They called it the Tiger Effect. It's very real and he's very real now too, watching how he played (Wednesday).

"He's back and we're hoping we'll get him," Dr. Brown said.

"Tiger qualified in '07 but he didn't come because of family situations, and then in '08 he had his knee problem [but] we're hoping the third time we'll be lucky," the Premier added.

Carr said it was 50-50 that Tiger wouldn't win a major, so the likelihood is that Bermuda could see him up close.

"We realized that after the first Grand Slam we were kind of lucky in the sense that we didn't get Tiger the first year because the PGA were absolutely astounded by the support the Grand Slam got here, with over 8,000 people," he said.

Larger crowds

"We would not have been able to cope with the projected crowds of 15,000. When you get Tiger, you get the non-golfer coming.

"In Bermuda we would not only get an increase of 40 per cent but perhaps an increase of 100 per cent," Carr said.

The PGA Grand Slam of Golf is scheduled for October 19 to 21 at Port Royal. The previous two years it was held at the Mid Ocean Club.

The Grand Slam is played amongst the winners of the four majors - The British Open, The PGA Championship, The U.S. Open and the Masters.

Last year Jim Furyk won it, while the first year it was in Bermuda, the event was won by Angel Cabrera in an exciting playoff against Padraig Harrington.

Tiger Woods has won the PGA Grand Slam seven times - more than any other player.

The winner gets $600,000 with the fourth place finisher pocketing $200,000.

Dr. Brown said: "It will be a proud moment when the PGA Grand Slam of Golf is played this fall at the refurbished Port Royal Gold Course. Progress is coming along nicely.

"PGA of America officials were in Bermuda last week and they have given us an enthusiastic endorsement on the developments up in Southampton."

In a press release David Charles senior director of championships at the PGA of America said: "We had an opportunity to review the course construction during the week of February 16th and we are pleased with the progress of the golf course and Steve Johnson's (director of agronomy) plan to have everything ready for October.

"Port Royal is shaping up to be a very special property. We are excited about hosting the 2009 PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda at Port Royal Golf Course."

Dr. Brown added: "It is good to hear the PGA of America's endorsement because its knowledge base of the world's finest golf courses is unmatched. Soon golfers everywhere will appreciate what many of us in Bermuda have long believed about Port Royal - the course is truly a gem."

The makeover at Port Royal costs about $14 million and includes lengthening the course 281 yards, adding Tif Eagle greens, repaved cart paths, a new reverse osmosis plant and a host of other improvements.

At the press conference besides announcing Leon Nearon as the chairman of the Grand Slam of Golf executive committee, Dr, Brown also said Nearon will be assisted by Geoff Piggott as vice chairman for administration and Andy Burrows as vice chairman for operations.

Dr. Brown said: "In all there are 15 people working under these gentlemen as part of the Grand Slam Executive Committee. We have distributed the full organizational chart to you this afternoon. Note that five of the appointees are carry-overs from Mid Ocean Club which will help smooth the transition as the tournament moves from the east end of the island to the west."[[In-content Ad]]

---