PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Tiger Woods isn’t sure what will happen at next month’s Genesis Invitational, his PGA Tour event in Los Angeles’ fire-ravaged Pacific Palisades neighborhood.
He insists there are bigger concerns.
Woods said Tuesday night that meetings have been scheduled about how the tournament will be played after making his debut in the TGL Indoor Golf League he helped found, but did not reveal any decisions or suggest the tournament might be moved from Riviera Country Club.
“We’re working hard to figure everything out and make sure everyone is safe and we have future meetings scheduled,” Woods said. “But as of right now, we’re not really focused on the tournament. It’s more about what we can do to help everyone. Someone who is struggling, losing their home and changing their life.”
Woods, who grew up in Southern California, said he knows “some people who have lost everything.”
“It’s tough,” Woods said.
The PGA Tour has not announced any changes to plans for the Genesis, originally scheduled for Feb. 13-16. Riviera is the site of the 2028 Olympic golf competition and is very close to the area devastated by the fire. The course itself was not directly affected.
Woods’ TGL teammate Max Homa, also a Southern California native, said the status of golf tournaments is of no concern to anyone at this point.
“I know these natural disasters happen all too often. However, this is the first one that I remember, every news clip, every time someone mentioned an area, I could picture it so clearly,” Homa said. “It’s very eerie. Luckily, all my friends and family are safe. The house isn’t necessarily intact, but it’s great to be able to talk to a lot of people and I think their perspective is amazing, ‘Hey, we’re Safety, this is the most important thing.
Tickets for Tuesday’s Genesis Game are still on sale, but no one knows what will happen in the next few weeks or whether it will be possible to hold the game in Los Angeles.
“There are a lot more important things than this,” Woods said. “We then held a meeting to try to resolve any issues.”
Woods’ Jupiter Links team lost 12-1 to Los Angeles Golf Club in the TGL opener. Collin Morikawa of Tuesday’s winning team said representing the city was stressful for him and teammates Justin Rose and Sahisi Sigala.
A weeklong fire at homes and businesses in Los Angeles has killed at least 25 people, displaced thousands and destroyed more than 12,000 structures in what may be the most expensive fires in U.S. history.
“You think it’s over, but it’s not,” Morikawa said. “The winds are getting stronger. The fires are still going on. People are still out putting out fires, protecting homes, helping neighbors, helping the community. That’s why Los Angeles is such a great city to me. You see everyone coming together. “
Morikawa wore an “LA Strong” T-shirt that is being sold to raise money for firefighting efforts. Like Morikawa, Sigala has deep ties to Southern California. He was born and raised in the area and attended college at Pepperdine University. He said his caddy’s sister lost her home in the fire.
“I was on the Pepperdine campus during the ’18 Woolsey fire, and it felt like this thing had been going on for the last six or seven years. There was no sign of it slowing down,” Sigala said. “Before the first fire, it didn’t feel real at all. You see fires happen, houses burnt down, people’s lives destroyed, and when you see it right in front of you, it’s so real, it’s more Any media depiction is scarier.
Morikawa said he’s proud to be able to distract Los Angeles for a few hours, as the Los Angeles Rams did in Monday night’s NFC wild-card playoff game, which was moved due to a fire Arizona.
“We may be the newest team in Los Angeles, but to have back-to-back wins with the Rams and us… I know you’re going to laugh at that,” Morikawa said. “But you see, we don’t take this lightly.”
