'TIGER' HEADLINES 2003 BUICK TOURING PRO ROSTER
DETROIT - Buick's roster of touring professionals
for the 2003 season includes the world's number one ranked
player and two young veterans each looking to have a breakout
season.
Woods, 27, is off to another outstanding start in 2003 with
three victories in his first five events and a career total
of 37 wins, 11th on the all-time list. He had another outstanding
year in 2002 with five victories, 13 top-10 finishes and almost
seven million dollars in official earnings. He finished first
in 14 statistical categories and has made 96 consecutive cuts
through the end of 2002. Woods won the Jack Nicklaus Award
as the PGA Tour Player of The Year for the fourth consecutive
year and the fifth time in the last six years.
Under the terms of a marketing partnership he signed with
Buick in 1999, Woods appears in advertisements, participates
in promotional activities, makes personal appearances for
the company and uses a golf bag with the Buick logo on it
during all tournaments.
"Tiger is an outstanding player and an even better person,"
said Larry Peck, golf marketing manager for Buick. "He
continues to impress us with his skills on and off the course
and has really made a difference to Buick and the game of
golf."
PGA Tour professionals David Berganio Jr., and Matt Gogel
each have a sponsorship agreement with Buick and represent
the company at events nationwide.
Berganio and Gogel each wear a Buick hat or visor while playing
in any PGA Tour event. They also make appearances on behalf
of the company, conduct media interviews and participate in
photo and autograph sessions.
In addition, Buick has a promotional agreement with golf
instructor Butch Harmon and the Butch Harmon School of Golf.
Harmon will participate in golf promotions for the company,
including the "Tiger Woods Training Camp" at Rio
Secco Golf Club in Las Vegas.
Buick signed its first endorsement agreement with Berganio
in 1997, Woods in 1999 and Gogel and Harmon in 2001.
Tiger Woods (prior to WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship)
Woods made his 2003 debut at the Buick Invitational, following
a two-month layoff due to knee surgery in December. He started
his season by capturing his second Buick Invitational title
(1999), a four-stroke victory at Torrey Pines Golf Course
in La Jolla, Calif.
Woods followed his Buick Invitational victory with a fifth
place (six-under -par) finish in Los Angeles. He went on to
capture the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and the
Bay Hill Invitational in consecutive weeks. The wins put him
on top of the PGA Tour money list with $2,974,250. At Bay
Hill, Tiger became the first player in 73 years to win the
tournament four consecutive times (Gene Sarazin - Miami Open
in 1930)
Woods finished the 2002 season with more than 30 million
dollars in career earnings ($33,103,852), continuing as the
PGA Tour's all-time leader. He recorded top-10 finishes in
his final six events, including two victories. Woods was named
the recipient of the Arnold Palmer Award, presented annually
to the PGA Tour's leading money winner ($6,912,625), and the
Byron Nelson Award, given annually to the player with the
lowest adjusted scoring average.
For the fourth time in five years Woods was selected as the
PGA Tour Player of the Year and the Golf Writers Association
of America Player of the Year (1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002).
Woods eclipsed the $6 million mark in earnings for the third
time in the past four years (1999, 2000) with his victory
at the WGC-American Express Championship. Woods earned $1,000,000
for the win, his fifth in 2002 and 34th of his career.
Woods won his second consecutive Major with his three-stroke
victory at the U.S. Open in June. He finished the tournament
at three-under-par (the only player to finish under par),
and earned $1,000,000 for the victory, his third win of the
season. With the victory, Woods became the first golfer in
history to surpass $30 million in career earnings.
Woods captured his 33rd career PGA Tour victory in August
when he won the 2002 Buick Open at Warwick Hills Golf &
Country Club in Grand Blanc, Mich. The win put Tiger over
the five million dollar mark for the fourth consecutive season.
Since then, Tiger finished second at the PGA Championship,
fourth at the WGC-NEC Invitational and first at the WGC-American
Express Championship.
Earlier in the year Woods became the third golfer to successfully
defend his Masters title (Jack Nicklaus, 1965-66 and Nick
Faldo, 1989-90) with a three-stroke victory over Retief Goosen
in Augusta in April. Woods became the seventh golfer to win
The Masters three times (1997, 2001, 2002).
Woods earned his first victory of 2002 when he captured the
Bay Hill Invitational in Orlando, Fla. With the win, Tiger
became the youngest player ever to reach 30 victories (26).
It was his third consecutive win at Bay Hill and he became
the first player to win three separate tournaments three consecutive
times.
Woods earned more than $5.5 million ($5,687,777) in 2001,
finishing first on the PGA Tour money list for the third consecutive
year. Woods became the first golfer in history to win all
four majors consecutively (U.S. Open, British Open, PGA Championship,
Masters) with his victory at the 2001 Masters last April,
his third consecutive victory of the 2001 season.
Woods recorded five victories on the PGA Tour in 2001, including
the Bay Hill Invitational, THE PLAYERS Championship, Masters
Tournament, Memorial Tournament and the WGC-NEC Invitational,
bringing his number of career victories on the PGA Tour then
to 29.
Woods finished in the top-30 in all 19 PGA Tour events he
entered in 2001, including nine top-10 finishes. Woods finished
the year with a scoring average of 68.81, first on the PGA
Tour. Making the cut in all 19 tournaments he entered in 2001,
Woods extended his streak of consecutive cuts made on the
PGA Tour to 78 through the 2001 season.
Woods ranked first in seven statistical categories in 2001,
including scoring average and total earnings.
Woods was a two-time NCAA All-American at Stanford University
and a three-time U.S. Amateur Champion. He won numerous awards
during his amateur career, including
Golf World Player of the Year (1992-1994), Golf Digest Player
of the Year (1991-1992), Titleist - Golfweek National Amateur
of the Year (1991-1992), and the Jack Nicklaus and Fred Haskins
Collegiate Player of the Year Awards (1996).
Woods' charity, the Tiger Woods Foundation, Inc., encourages
minority participation in golf-related activities through
clinics and support programs throughout the country. Woods,
27, is single and currently resides in Orlando, Fla.
David Berganio Jr. (prior to WGC-Accenture Match Play
Championship)
David Berganio Jr, 34, has recorded $23,370 in 2003, with
his top finish coming at the Buick Invitational, finishing
T-44.
Berganio recorded the best finish of his professional career
at the 2002 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, finishing second via
a sudden-death playoff to Phil Mickelson. Berganio finished
the five-day tournament at 30-under-par and earned $432,000,
the largest paycheck of his career. He finished the year with
$573,151 in official earnings.
Highlighted by a third place finish at the Canon Greater
Hartford Open, Berganio recorded his best year on the PGA
Tour in 2001. Berganio had six top-25 finishes, four top-10
finishes and he earned $685,082, more than tripling his previous
best earnings of $196,512 (2000 Buy.Com Tour).
Berganio's three other top-10 finishes in 2001 included a
fourth place finish at Greensboro and eighth place finishes
at the Nissan Open and the Bell Canadian Open.
Berganio made the cut in all four of Buick's title-sponsored
PGA Tour events in 2001, including a 38th place finish at
the Buick Challenge.
Berganio finished fifth in total driving in 2001, which combines
driving distance and driving accuracy percentage. In the 25
tournaments Berganio entered in 2001, he missed only six cuts,
en route to finishing 76th on the PGA Tour money list.
Berganio, who grew up in Los Angeles, won the 1989 Los Angeles
City Championship and two U.S. Amateur Public Links Championships
(1991 and 1993). He was a two-time All-American at the University
of Arizona and was a member of the 1993 Walker Cup Team. His
biggest thrill in golf was playing at the 1992 Masters.
Matt Gogel (prior to WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship)
Gogel has earned $122,200 in his first three PGA Tour events
in 2003, highlighted by a tie for 18th at the Phoenix Open.
Gogel recorded his first PGA Tour victory at the 2002 AT&T
Pebble Beach Pro-Am, finishing at 14-under-par and earning
$720,000, the biggest paycheck of his career. With the victory
at Pebble Beach, Gogel surpassed the $2 million dollar mark
in career earnings. Gogel finished the 2002 season with $1,089,482
in official earnings, the first time in his three-year career
that he eclipsed the million dollar mark in earnings for one
season.
Gogel recorded three top-10 finishes in 2002. In addition
to his victory at AT&T, he tied for 9th at the WGC-Accenture
Match Play Championship and he tied for 9th at the WGC-NEC
Invitational.
Gogel, 32, recorded seven top-25 finishes, including four
top-10's, on the PGA Tour in 2001. Gogel concluded the 2001
season with top-10 finishes in two of his last four events,
earning $317,350 during the span. Gogel finished the year
with $729,783, an increase of nearly $300,000 over his 2000
earnings.
Gogel's best performance of 2001 was a fifth place finish
at the John Deere Classic. Gogel recorded a 12th place finish
at the U.S. Open, finishing in a tie with Tiger Woods at 3-over-par.
At the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, Gogel fired
a course-record, and career-best 62 at Poppy Hills and led
the tournament after 36 holes, ultimately finishing in a tie
for 27th.
Gogel is in his fourth year on the PGA Tour following a successful
career on the Buy.Com Tour, where he accumulated six victories
from 1996 to 1999. Gogel's six wins tie him with Sean Murphy
for most in Buy.Com Tour history. Gogel was also the first
player in Buy.Com Tour history to win a tournament in four
consecutive years.
Gogel earned his PGA Tour card for 2000 by finishing seventh
on the 1999 Buy.Com Tour money list. He had two victories
that season - the Louisiana Open and the Cleveland Open.
An NCAA All-American at Kansas, Gogel is married and resides
in Mission Hills, Kansas.
Butch Harmon
World-renowned golf instructor Butch Harmon signed a promotional
agreement with Buick in 2001 to make appearances and participate
in golf promotions for the company. Harmon, who is Tiger Woods'
golf coach, hosts the "Tiger Woods Training Camp"
with Tiger at the Butch Harmon School of Golf at Rio Secco
Golf Club in Las Vegas.
Harmon has been involved in the sport of golf for nearly
40 years. His father, Claude Harmon, renowned teaching pro
and 1948 Masters Champion, introduced him to the game. A former
PGA Tour player in the 1970's, Harmon has coached several
other PGA Tour pros, including Darren Clarke and Mark Calcavecchia.
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