Castle Rock – In what was more of a pointed appeal to the PGA Tour than his usual state-of-the-tournament news conference, Jack Vickers said Thursday he needs help to make The International “the best at what we do.”
What the tournament needs, said its founder, is a better week – preferably in the middle of the summer – and a reduced field, themes he has been harping on for years.
“I’m not satisfied with where we are (on the calendar),” Vickers said. “We’ve been diligent and faithful in trying to work with these dates.”
But there finally is optimism for change, with the PGA Tour expected to make significant scheduling changes before its television contracts expire at the end of the 2006 season.
One potential solution, discussed at both the offices of The International and the PGA Tour, is adding a fifth World Golf Championship event.
“We don’t have any deals,” Vickers said. “But if you ask me if I’d be interested in that, yes, I’d be interested, depending on the terms. First of all, it would cut the field back and it would get Tiger Woods and the best players in the world here, which would be good.”
PGA commissioner Tim Finchem, in town Thursday, said: “We’ve met with Jack and his team, and I think we have a good idea of the steps we can take to ensure the future success of this tournament. It’s been a great tournament, and we want to continue to build on it if we can, and we think we can.”
Asked about the possibility of adding a fifth WGC event, Finchem said, “we are looking at all options.”
Vickers said hosting The International in August was acceptable when the tournament was played between the PGA Championship and the World Series of Golf. But with the loss of that sequence and the late-summer weather problems that have interrupted all 20 tournaments, as well as the difficulty of getting a 144-man field through 36 holes in two days, he now prefers a date in late June or July.
“I want to be the best at what we do, and I don’t think with those things dragging on our tail that we can be the best at what we do,” Vickers said. “Given the chance to be the best at what we do, we’ll perform.
“But it’s a two-way street. It isn’t just our problem, it’s the tour’s problem as well. We’ve got to work through this.”
Joseph Sanchez can be reached at 303-820-5458 or jsanchez@denverpost.com.
