A Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based company that makes air cooling systems claims Sun Day Red’s logo resembles its logo too much.
Sun Day Red, the apparel and lifestyle brand that launched in February by Tiger Woods and TaylorMade, is in a trademark dispute with Tigeraire, a company that makes cooling products for athletes, over its logo.
As reported by CNBC, Tigeraire claims the Sun Day Red logo, which depicts a 15-striped tiger, closely resembles its leaping tiger trademarked logo, and that could create confusion for consumers and violate Tigeraire’s brand identity.
The corporate logos of Tigeraire and Sun Day Red.
A court filing from Tigeraire states, “The actions of SDR, TaylorMade and Tiger Woods blatantly ignore Tigeraire’s long-standing protected mark, brand and identity, violate federal and state intellectual property law, and disregard the consumer confusion their actions create. SDR’s application should be denied.”
Tigeraire registered its logo with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 2020. Among the products the Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based company sells are wearable air coolers, fans and air conditioning systems for football helmets, including those used by Louisiana State University.
By filing the notice of opposition to block Sun Day Red’s trademark application, Tigeraire could delay the official trademark approval for Sun Day Red. However, according to the CNBC report, production of Sun Day Red’s apparel and accessories is expected to continue.
David Abeles, the CEO of TaylorMade, told CNBC, “We have full confidence in the securitization of our trademarks.”
This list is updated through the 2024 Procore Championship.
There’s a lot of money to be made in professional golf.
Tiger Woods maintains his overall lead atop the PGA Tour’s all-time money list. He is the first golfer to surpass the $120,000,000 mark in on-course career earnings and the only one over the $100 million mark.
Phil Mickelson, before departing for the LIV Golf League, surpassed the $90 million mark. Rory McIlroy is third on this list. He has gone past $90 million as well. Scottie Scheffler is now the seventh to break the $70 million mark. Jason Day was the 11th to surpass the $60 million mark. Every golfer on this top 18 list is now a member of the $50 million club.
With the bigger pots at stake in the PGA Tour’s signature events, expect a lot of movement up in the next few years on this list. There are now 83 golfers who have surpassed the $25 million mark in career on-course earnings.
With that in mind, let’s look at the top money earners of all-time, as measured by on-course winnings. Some of the names may surprise you.
Editor’s note: This list is updated through the 2024 Procore Championship.
On Friday, Tiger Woods announced via social media that he’s undergone yet another back surgery.
Dr. Sheeraz Qureshi of Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Florida, performed the microdecompression surgery of the lumbar spine for nerve impingement in the lower back.
This procedure was an effort to alleviate back spasms and pain Woods battled throughout 2024.
In five PGA Tour starts this season, Woods withdrew from the Genesis Invitational midway through the second round due to illness, finished 60th at the Masters and missed the cut at the PGA Championship, U.S. Open and British Open.
Tiger Woods results 2024 PGA Tour season
Tournament
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Genesis Invitational
72 (WD)
Masters Tournament
73
72
82
77
PGA Championship
72
77
U.S. Open
74
73
Open Championship
79
77
Wood, a combined 45 over in 11 rounds in 2024, indicated he hopes this surgery allows him to return to normal life activities, including golf.
PGA Tour Enterprises chairman Joe Gorder and John W. Henry are two negotiating with the Saudis.
Officials from the PGA Tour and those from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund are meeting Tuesday in New York, according to an ESPN report. The two parties are allegedly working on finalizing terms of a deal that would inject more than $1 billion from the PIF into PGA Tour Enterprises, the newly created for-profit entity launched earlier this year.
The meetings are scheduled to last multiple days, according to ESPN.
PGA Tour Enterprises chairman Joe Gorder and Fenway Sports Group owner John W. Henry are two people negotiating with the Saudis.
The PGA Tour, DP World Tour and PIF, which has financed the LIV Golf League the past three years, signed a framework agreement on June 6, 2023, to form an alliance. The deadline expired Dec. 31 last year, but both sides have continued to work toward a potential deal, even if talk has seemed slowed in recent months.
Photos on social media surfaced Tuesday from the account radaratlas2, which regularly tracks flights, showing jets from the PGA Tour, Saudis and Tiger Woods all converging in the New York area on Monday. The ESPN story suggested that Woods was part of the discussions, but Golfweek has learned that Woods was in town for a charity event.
🚨Tiger Woods's airplane #N517TW, Saudi Aramco's #N650XA, and PGA's Tour Air #N795HG all flew to the NYC area yesterday 9/9/24. Tiger's and Aramco's are both at Newark #KEWR and PGA's landed at Morristown #KMMUpic.twitter.com/rQyW7IBMaT
“As it relates to any details of the conversations that we’re having with the Public Investment Fund, I’m not going to disclose details. I’m not going to get into specifics.”
“I’m not going to negotiate details in public or disclose details or specifics. All I can say is that conversations continue, and they’re productive.”
“When you get into productive conversations, that enhances the likelihood of positive outcomes, and that enhances the spirit of those very conversations. I think that’s where things stand.”
(Editor’s note: This story was updated to include Tiger Woods’ reason for traveling to New York.)
It’s been nearly six years since the first edition of The Match, the made-for-TV series of silly season golf events featuring everyone from PGA Tour legends to current NFL and NBA all-stars.
In that time, golf fans have been treated to seven different matches, most recently the first to be played using a mixed-team format.
Even though the first edition of The Match – Woods vs. Phil Mickelson in November 2018 in Las Vegas – didn’t quite live up to the hype, it proved there was a market for the competition. Over the years the matches have grown into charitable causes benefitting COVID-19 relief and HBCU’s while still providing golf fans a unique product outside of 72-hole stroke-play tournaments.
Stearns said Nicklaus would have done the work free of charge.
NBC News is reporting that Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus, two of the biggest names in golf, were included in the Florida plan to put golf courses in Jonathan Dickinson State Park. The network cited a representative for the legendary golfers who confirmed their interest in the project.
The Palm Beach Post reported last week that two companies founded by Nicklaus, but with which he is no longer affiliated with, flatly stated they were not involved in the state park proposal. But the statement also made clear they were not speaking for Nicklaus.
Plans by the Department of Environmental Protection to add golf courses, lodges and pickleball courts in nine state parks drew an outburst of anger, especially the part of the plan that included putting golf courses in Dickinson, a state park on the Palm Beach-Martin County border not far from Woods’ Jupiter Island home and Nicklaus’ North Palm Beach home.
On Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis distanced himself from the plan, saying it was “half-baked” and “leaked to a left-wing group to try to create a narrative.” He said that there had been some calls for improvements at state parks, but that the DEP needed to go back to the drawing board.
Documents were leaked to environmentalists a week ago showing plans for the installation of three public golf courses at Jonathan Dickinson as part of the state’s 2024-2025 Great Outdoors Initiative.
The fervor of discontent that followed led to the state postponing public meetings that were scheduled.
NBC News said Eugene Stearns, who represents Nicklaus, said Woods and Nicklaus would do course-design work on the project.
“There were actually going to be at least two courses; one would be a Tiger course and one would be a Jack course,” Stearns told NBC News.
Stearns said Nicklaus would have done the work free of charge.
“For Jack, it was a charitable issue,” Stearns told NBC News.
Nicklaus Companies, which is no longer affiliated with founder Jack Nicklaus, told The Palm Beach Post it was not associated with the recent golf course plans. The statement from Nicklaus Companies emphasized that it was from the firms — Nicklaus Companies and Nicklaus Design — alone, not Jack Nicklaus personally.
Nicklaus Companies reiterated that it had nothing to do with the courses at Jonathan Dickinson and called the project an “ill-conceived plan.”
“We cannot comment on what other parties may be doing, but Nicklaus Companies and Nicklaus Design oppose the development of golf courses in Jonathan Dickinson Park or any other Florida state park,” a statement sent to The Palm Beach Post said. “If asked to participate in such a project, we would decline.”
Jack Nicklaus resigned from Nicklaus Companies in May 2022 when he was 82 years old.
“Nicklaus Companies has no inside information regarding projects he may or may not have pursued over the last two years outside of our companies,” the statement added.
In 2011, legislators tried to add golf courses to state parks through bills that would have created the “Jack Nicklaus Golf Trail of Florida.” The only park specifically mentioned in the House’s version of the bill was Jonathan Dickinson, which is nearest Nicklaus’ North Palm Beach home.
The bills were quickly withdrawn after public outcry.
A yellow-crowned Night Heron is perched on a tree branch along the Loxahatchee River in Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Martin County, Florida. They are quite common in parts of the southeast, particularly in coastal regions. It often feeds by day as well as by night. Its stout bill seems to be an adaptation for feeding on hard-shelled crustaceans
(Photo: Greg Lovett/palmbeachpost.com)
The Tuskegee Foundation had a proposal for the golf courses at Jonathan Dickinson State Park
The swift anger and outrage spurred a mysterious foundation — called the Tuskegee Foundation — that proposed golf courses for Dickinson to announce it was pulling the plug on the plan days after leaked documents revealed how the plan would change the park.
The Tuskegee Foundation withdrew its application for the golf course proposal two days after the foundation’s name was associated with the development plans.
The Delaware-registered foundation, which is not required to list the names of directors and officers in the articles of incorporation, has Florida lobbyists, including a former secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection, according to Florida lobbyist records.
Before dropping its bid, the foundation said in a statement sent to The Palm Beach Post last week that the golf courses and other facilities would have told the “inspirational story of the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African American military pilots and airmen who fought in World War II.”
The anger against the plan prompted the foundation to release a statement through political commentator Daniel Bongino that it was no longer pursuing the proposal.
“Serving God and Country is our daily goal,” said the statement, which Bongino posted on Facebook. “That was the spirit for the idea to bring world-class public golf to southeast Florida … We have received clear feedback that Jonathan Dickinson State Park is not the right location. We did not understand the local community landscape and appreciate the clarity. We will not pursue building in the beloved Jonathan Dickinson State Park.”
DEP spokeswoman Alex Kuchta said in a statement late Sunday that the proposal was withdrawn.
“The Florida Department of Environmental Protection appreciates the Tuskegee Dunes Foundation’s good-faith proposal for a public golf course at Jonathan Dickinson State Park,” Kuchta wrote. “While they are withdrawing their proposal, the foundation worked with the state to pursue a project that would have created a public, world-class golf course for all, while supporting veterans, first responders and their families. Their plan to honor the Tuskegee Airmen was noble.”
Woods unleashed his star power at the Greater Milwaukee Open 1996.
“Hello world.”
It was an orchestrated line, part of a Nike campaign designed to coincide with the professional debut of 20-year-old Tiger Woods.
In fact, it was actually “I guess, hello world, huh?” when Woods opened his press conference one day before the start of the Greater Milwaukee Open on Aug. 28, 1996.
Within two days, Nike’s “Hello World” ad campaign included a three-page spread in the Wall Street Journal and a number of televised advertisements. In fact, Nike shelved all of its previous national television ads and aired its Woods spot 28 times during first-round coverage of the GMO on ESPN.
History doesn’t remember it as forced or contrived, the way “I’m going to take my talents to South Beach” awkwardly landed from the lips of LeBron James nearly 14 years later. In the category of watershed press conferences delivered by the half-century’s transcendent athletes, Woods outshined LeBron with the right dash of earnestness and charm.
He delivered those words at Brown Deer Park Golf Course in northern Milwaukee County. Woods was about to embark on a legendary career unlike anything the golf world had seen before, and he was getting started on Aug. 28, 1996, at the Greater Milwaukee Open. The turnout was estimated at 150,000 spectators, easily the most in event history, when Milwaukee became the surprise setting for the dawn of a new era.
Woods finished a mere 60th place in the event, but he nonetheless left winner Loren Roberts as an afterthought, even after Roberts defeated Madison native Jerry Kelly in a playoff for the title while Edgerton’s Steve Stricker hovered just one stroke back of the leaders.
It wasn’t until the week of the event that word came Woods was seriously considering turning pro in advance of the tournament, though even then, it wasn’t a sure thing. To that point, the prevailing sentiment was that Woods, who committed in April to play the GMO with a sponsor’s exemption, could potentially turn pro if he won the event or the Quad City Classic two weeks later.
Tiger Woods plays a shot on the fairway during his pro debut at the 1996 Greater Milwaukee Open at the Brown Deer Golf Course in Wisconsin. (Photo: J.D. Cuban/Allsport)
But then, he won his third straight U.S. Amateur Title in Oregon the week before the GMO, roaring back from down five holes to turn the feat, and the possibility grew stronger that he’d make it official in Milwaukee. The New York Times and Los Angeles Times both reported it was happening. The pro-am at Brown Deer Park Golf Course on Wednesday was Woods’ final round as an amateur, and he held an afternoon news conference thereafter.
The GMO was suddenly bracing for a media onslaught it hadn’t seen in its 29 years. ESPN made the quick decision to air the first two rounds. Credentials were suddenly needed for Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest, People, the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, the Chicago Sun-Times, NBC Nightly News, Live with Regis and Kathie Lee… you get the idea.
The overnight millionaire
Woods finished at 7-under 277. He won $2,544. His first sponsorship check was probably somewhat … more.
The revelation of Tiger Woods had been anticipated by the golf world for years. Jack Nicklaus himself had called Woods a can’t-miss superstar, and there was little doubt he would become a transcendent presence in the game.
The child prodigy became the youngest U.S. Junior Amateur champion at age 15, won the next two for good measure, became the youngest U.S. Amateur champion at age 18, competed in the 1995 Masters at age 19 and became the first golfer to win three straight U.S. Amateur title at age 20. He won the NCAA individual golf championship at Stanford and turned pro after two years, although his father, Earl Woods, had expressed a desire to see Tiger return to Stanford for the final two years.
But Nike and Titleist lined up sponsorship deals before he took a professional swing, the most lucrative endorsement contracts golf had seen (reported at close to $40 million but later revealed to be closer to $60 million). He was on his way to earning Sports Illustrated‘s Sportsman of the Year in 1996 and PGA Tour Rookie of the Year, not to mention the 82 PGA Tour wins that followed (tied for most all time) and the 15 major victories that rank second to only Jack Nicklaus. He’s also an 11-time PGA Tour Player of the Year.
With Woods not due back at Stanford until Sept. 28, GMO executive director Tom Strong made the smart play to offer an exemption. In fact, Strong said he tried to get Woods on a sponsor exemption in 1995, recognizing that he’d be a significant draw for an event that wasn’t one of the Tour’s marquee events, but a phone call to Stanford’s coach was never returned.
“He’s not one of those shot-in-the-dark guys,” Strong said. “He is going to be on the Tour someday, and he’ll do well. He’s not a fluke, that’s for sure.”
Woods insisted he hadn’t made up his mind until close to the announcement. He said he paid for a dinner early in the week with a gift certificate and needed his coach to float the $100 entrance fee. But when he swapped his clubs from a Ping bag to a Titleist bag late Wednesday, he was officially a pitchman.
“It wasn’t about money,” Woods said. “It was about happiness. The time was right. I knew my golf game was good enough. It boiled down to, how happy am I? And I’m happy.”
Though Woods didn’t finish near the front, he did deliver a hole-in-one on the 14th hole during the final round of play.
“I tried to punch a 6-iron under the wind but it went higher than I wanted,” Woods said. “The ball hit on the green and kicked left and I said, `That should be close.’ All of a sudden, people started jumping up and down.”
Hello world, indeed.
This story originally appeared in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, part of the USA Today Network, on April 6, 2020, as part of a look at the top 50 sports moments in Wisconsin.
Tyler Reddick’s Upper Deck paint scheme features Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky and Tiger Woods this week.
When you think of collecting sports cards, the Upper Deck brand is one of the more iconic in the industry. And now, with the NASCAR season wrapping up, the company is sponsoring a car featuring Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, and Tiger Woods.
On Monday, Upper Deck and 23XI Racing unveiled the paint scheme for Tyler Reddick’s car this week in Darlington for the season-finale race. And the car features the three legends. Jordan is part owner of 23XI Racing, which employs Reddick so it makes sense for the collab to happen on his car.
Check out the sweet paint scheme that will run this weekend:
The No. 45 Upper Deck Toyota Camry XSE will debut this weekend at Darlington, S.C., in the 2024 regular season finale. The scheme is fit for the current regular season points leader with 23XI Racing co-owner Michael Jordan alongside Tiger Woods and Wayne Gretzky on the hood 🐐. pic.twitter.com/tuNLwe0FKz
The partnership with NASCAR and 23XI Racing also features authenticated memorabilia and trading cards of NASCAR stars Tyler Reddick and Bubba Wallace. That gives fans a new way to collect NASCAR drivers from the team.
“This collection is monumental for Upper Deck as it reintroduces racing into our diverse lineup of premium authenticated memorabilia,” said Upper Deck President Jason Masherah. “Just as 23XI burst onto the NASCAR scene with speed and determination, we’re bringing racing to our portfolio with the same energy. We’re thrilled to celebrate iconic moments from this fan-centric sport.”
Reddick enters this weekend’s Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway as the points leader in NASCAR this year. He has also qualified for NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.
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“I’ve met President Bush and Obama and I was not nearly as starstruck as when I met Tiger Woods for the first time.”
Former Major League Baseball outfielder Jeff Francouer shared a Tiger Woods story from back in the 2005-06 timeframe when Woods was an absolute menace on the golf course and arguably the biggest name in pro sports.
“I’ve met President Bush and Obama and I was not nearly as starstruck as when I met Tiger Woods for the first time,” Francouer told ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian on his podcast Great Game or What.
Atlanta Braves Manager Bobby Cox used to allow his players to play golf during spring training. One day, they had a 1 p.m. spring training game against the New York Yankees. Francoeur was 22 and had just been named a starter. He was in no position to ask for a day off from training camp. But he didn’t have to because Cox came over to him during stretching and informed him that star pitcher and golf fanatic John Smoltz had an afternoon tee time at 1:50 with Tiger.
“I’m like, I’m fine, Bobby, I’m ready to play,” said Francoeur, 40, a right fielder who played on eight different MLB teams and serves as a TV analyst for the Braves these days. “He goes, ‘No, I’ll make you a deal.’ He said, ‘After your first at-bat today, run through first base and kind of rub your ankle like you hurt it, right?’ He’s like, ‘In two days we’re going to Bradenton.’ You need three starters to play on a road trip. And he’s like, ‘I hate Bradenton’s infield. I don’t want to get any of the guys hurt. So if you go to Bradenton, I’ll let you play with Tiger,’” Francouer recounted that Cox told him.
As instructed, the right fielder grounded out in his first at-bat and ran to first base rubbing his ankle in front of an estimated 12,000-13,000 fans in Orlando.
“Bobby, he waddles out there and he checks on me,” recalled Francoeur before pulling him from the game as a safety precaution. “I run inside, literally throw my golf clothes, didn’t shower, and I get to the golf club and they’re on the first fairway. So I hit my tee shot, we end up playing 27 holes and around 4:30 my wife sends me (a text) that there was an update that said Francouer day to day with a high ankle sprain.”
The things professional athletes did to tee it up with the one and only Tiger Woods.
Crews began construction on March 18 and now are working toward full “dry-in.”
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida — The indoor golf arena rising on the Palm Beach State College campus in Palm Beach Gardens now resembles a nearly enclosed building.
Five months before teams of players from around the world begin to compete in TGL team play there, crews have completed work on the towering SoFI Center’s roof and sides.
Next, they will work on the steel framing for its “surrounding concourse,” a part of the building that juts out in the front. This will be the arena’s entrance area with space for concessions, according to a spokesperson for TGL presented by SoFi.
TGL is the interactive golf league that’s led by PGA Tour players Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, who both have homes in the region. The first match is scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN on Jan. 7, 2025, during prime time.
Crews began construction on March 18 and now are working toward full “dry-in” — when the building’s shell is complete and protected from wind and rain — in early September.
After that, interior and tech teams will install some of the SoFi Center’s technology, including rigging the arena for lighting, cameras and audio, installing motorization tech under the putting green and putting in screen framing and LED boards.
A 46-foot-by-64-foot Jumbotron-type screen will also be installed in time for a full rehearsal in mid-fall.
These same tech elements were originally installed in an inflatable dome, the first iteration of the arena, according to the spokesperson. Those plans were scrapped when blustery weather and a power outage left the dome in tatters.
Maya Washburn covers northern Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida-Network. Reach her atmwashburn@pbpost.com. Support local journalism:Subscribe today.
