Tournament elevated from open to invitational
By Chad Winthrop
15-time major champion Tiger Woods has confirmed he will play in the 2020 Genesis Invitational, to be held February 10-16 at The Riviera Country Club. In its first year with elevated status, the longstanding tournament is now an invitational, with Woods serving as tournament host.
“It’s an honor for us to be in the same category as Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer,” Woods said of The Genesis Invitational’s new status. “Those are two legends of the game. For us to have this type of elevation, all the things we want to have happen for the tournament are going to happen. On top of that, to be able to host the tournament each and every year at Riviera, where it all started for me, it’s come full circle.”
At last year’s tournament, Woods finished six-under-par to finish tied for 15th. Tournament winner J.B. Homles finished at 14-under-par, battling through windy conditions to secure the victory.
The tournament, previously an “open” has been elevated by the PGA to an “invitational”, giving the tournament more prestige. Opens, like the U.S. Open, have requirements in place for golfers who want to play but any golfer who meets those criteria can attempt to play their way into the field by entering qualifying events. An invitational is not open to anyone attempting to qualify as contestants are invited from a small number of professionals.
Woods made his PGA TOUR debut as an amateur in 1992 at Riviera. In 2020, Woods will return to compete at Riviera for the third straight year, coming off a calendar year in which he won twice on TOUR. In April, Woods won the Masters for the fifth time and in October he captured his 82nd career PGA TOUR win. In addition to his on-course success, the elevated status of The Genesis Invitational will celebrate Woods’ TGR Foundation, which provides award-winning STEM curricula, college-access programs, a digital platform and educator professional development and has reached more than one million students.
In recognition of Woods’ debut at Riviera and the elevation of The Genesis Invitational, ticket prices for the 2020 tournament start at $19.92. For more information visit GenesisInvitational.com.
