In my eyes, Tiger Woods is the most influential figure in the golf business. He is the number one player in the world right now. He has won forty PGA Tour events, including eight majors, since he turned pro in 1996. He is the only player to hold all four majors at one time. He was the youngest player to ever win the Masters at age 21, where he shot an impressive 18 under par to win by 12 strokes. Before he turned pro, he also had an unbelievable childhood. He was on TV putting with Bob Hope at age two. He won the Optimist International Junior tournament six times. He won the U.S. Junior Amateur three times. He also won the U.S. Amateur three consecutive years. He also won the NCAA title while playing for Stanford before he decided to turn pro. He played in his first PGA Tour event at age 16. He has been selected PGA Tour Player of the Year six times.
             Golf has been waiting for a player like this to come around. He is the most exciting player to watch because you never know what he will do next. He pulls of impossible looking shots on a regular basis. Since he turned pro on August 27, 1996, he has impacted all parts of the golfing world. Now even non-golfers are paying attention to the sport. The money he has brought to the golf business includes TV contracts, rises in ticket and merchandise sales, and endorsement deals. According to tournament officials and TV and corporate executives, the new money has totaled 653.5 million dollars and is still rising.
             Rob Correa, CBS Sports vice president, said their network's golf ratings were up 24 percent since Tiger started playing. At the Buick Classic, ticket sales were up 35 percent because Woods had entered the field. According to tournament directors, ticket sales are up 35 percent and souvenir sales are up 28 percent. Before Woods, 19.4 million homes watched the final rounds of the four majors. Now, 30.3 million homes are tuned into the four events. PGA To...