Augusta, GA

Tiger Woods to be lone player on negotiating committee with Saudis

Published

3 weeks ago

May 9, 2024

Tiger Woods to be lone player on negotiating committee with Saudis

Tiger Woods will be the lone player on a five-member subcommittee that will be involved in negotiations with the Public Investment Fund, part of a busy day of governance as the PGA Tour tries to strike a deal with Saudi backers of LIV Golf.

Woods was appointed to the PGA Tour board in August, making him the sixth player-director and the only one whose board term has no limits.

The tour said Woods will be part of the “transaction subcommittee” on the board of PGA Tour Enterprises that will handle day-to-day negotiations as PIF seeks to become a minority investor.

Also on the subcommittee are PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, board chairman Joe Gorder, John W. Henry of Fenway Sports Group and Joe Ogilvie, a former tour player appointed as a director liaison in March.

The subcommittee reports back to the full board.

The developments capped a day that began with Rory McIlroy losing the inside track on rejoining the board as Webb Simpson’s replacement when board members resisted his return.

“I think there was a subset of people on the board that were maybe uncomfortable with me coming back on for some reason,” McIlroy said at the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte, North Carolina, where a $20 million signature event is being played.

Simpson had offered to resign, but only if McIlroy were to replace him. When a player director resigns, the other players on the board have to unanimously agree on a successor. McIlroy resigned from the board in November, and the players selected Jordan Spieth to replace him.

The seven players — Woods, Spieth, Simpson, Ogilvie, Patrick Cantlay, Adam Scott and Peter Malnati — are on the board of the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Enterprises, the commercial entity that agreed to a deal with Strategic Sports Group as a minority investor.

That deal included a $1.5 billion investment, which could be as much as $3 billion.

McIlroy was willing to return, believing he could help find a solution to the split in golf that has left some of the best players on two tours. McIlroy sees the reunification in some form as the ultimate goal and rubbed players the wrong way when he suggested earlier this year that LIV players return without punishment.

“Today’s news is in no way a commentary on Rory’s important perspective and influence,” Monahan said in a statement. “It’s simple a matter of adherence to our governance process by which a tour player becomes a board member.

“Webb remaining in his position as a member of the policy board and PGA Tour Enterprises board through the end of his term provides the continuity needed at this vital time,” he said. “We are making progress in our negotiations with the PIF.”

McIlroy is certain to stay involved in an unofficial capacity based on his experience of two years on the board and his voice in the game. He was the only European tour member on the PGA Tour board, and McIlroy has cultivated relationships across continents during his career.

He had said on a British soccer podcast at the start of this year that he met with the PIF governor, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in late 2022 and that he returned home and encouraged the tour board to meet with him.

The framework agreement among the PGA Tour, European tour and PIF was announced June 6, with a deadline to finalize it by the end of 2023. Negotiations continue with little progress.

Woods was among the player directors who went to the Bahamas on March 18 — Monahan and Henry also attended — to meet with Al-Rumayyan.

Woods said at the Masters about that meeting, “I don’t know if we’re closer, but certainly we’re headed in the right direction. That was a very positive meeting, and I think both sides came away from the meeting feeling positive.”

Gorder is the chairman and CEO of Valero, the title sponsor of the Texas Open. He has been appointed the inaugural chairman of the PGA Tour Enterprises board.

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

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Augusta, GA

Business raises money for 3-year-old kidnapping victim’s recovery in Augusta

Published

5 hours ago

June 1, 2024

Press Room

Business raises money for 3-year-old kidnapping victim’s recovery in Augusta

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A South Carolina business is raising money for a 3-year-old who is recovering at Augusta Burn Center, after deputies say his father set a truck on fire while he was still inside.

Under The Carolina Moon announced that they are selling specially designed shirts to raise money for Bennett, 3, who is currently at the Augusta Burn Center receiving care for 3rd degree burns that cover 90% of his body, according to a GoFundMe page set up on behalf of his family.

Bennett’s father, 31-year-old Joshua Dornellas, is accused of violently assaulting Bennett’s mother on May 8 before kidnapping the boy and then leading officials on a chase across state lines.

Dornellas set a truck on fire with Bennett inside and then jumped through the window trying to evade officials, according to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office. Dornellas was later arrested in Georgia.

Bennett’s family gave an update Thursday stating that he has undergone multiple surgeries since the incident, including ones to amputate his toes and parts of the fingers on his right hand.

According to Under The Carolina Moon, all the proceeds from the new shirt will go to Bennett and his family to help during his recovery.

Bennett’s family says he is still in critical but stable condition and will remain at the Augusta Burn Center for at least six months.

Those interested in purchasing the shirt can find details about it here.

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Augusta, GA

2 injured in shooting at Walmart Neighborhood Market in Augusta

Published

12 hours ago

June 1, 2024

Press Room

2 injured in shooting at Walmart Neighborhood Market in Augusta

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Two people were injured in a shooting at the Walmart Neighborhood Market on Windsor Spring Road.

According to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, at 7:12 p.m., deputies responded to the 3600 block of Windsor Spring Road in reference to a shooting on Friday.

Upon arrival, deputies say they located two subjects who had been shot at least one time.

The sheriff’s office says the victims were transported to the hospital for treatment of their injuries.

A News 12 crew is on the way to the scene.

The incident comes amid an outbreak of violent crime that’s claimed more than 150 lives across the CSRA in two years. It’s affected communities large and small on both sides of the Savannah River. But as the largest city in the region, Augusta has been hit especially hard.

Authorities have blamed much of the problem on gangs, and many of the victims as well as the suspects have been young men.

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Augusta, GA

Key things to know about June 18 runoff in Richmond County

Published

19 hours ago

May 31, 2024

Press Room

Key things to know about June 18 runoff in Richmond County

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – On June 18, voters in Augusta-Richmond County will head to the polls to cast a vote in the general primary and nonpartisan election runoff.

On the ballot will be the Democratic sheriff runoff and nonpartisan Superior Court judge runoff.

The voter registration deadline and date for changes in registration was April 22.

Voting by mail began Wednesday. Applications are being accepted now. You’ll have to submit an absentee ballot request form that’s available at www.augustaga.gov/vote. Applications can be mailed to the Richmond County Board of Elections at 535 Telfair St., Suite 500, Augusta, GA 30901, faxed to 706-821-2814 or emailed to richmondelections@augustaga.gov. Voters can also apply for a ballot by visiting the online absentee portal at securemyabsenteeballot.sos.ga.gov/s/. The last day to request a ballot is June 7. In order to be counted, voted mail-in absentee ballots must be received by 7 p.m. June 18.

There will be a drop box open in the Linda Beazley Room during the advance voting period as allowed by law.

This flow chart shows who can vote in the runoff.(Contributed)

Advance voting will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday beginning June 10 in the Linda W. Beazley Community Room of the Augusta-Richmond County Municipal Building at 535 Telfair St., the Charles Evans Community Center at 1866 Highland Ave., the Robert Howard Community Center at 103 Diamond Lakes Way, and the Warren Road Recreation Center at 300 Warren Road. The last day to vote advance will be June 14.

Election Day voting will be available from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. June 18, and all polling locations in Augusta-Richmond County will be open. Voters must report to their assigned precinct in order to vote on Election Day.

Sample ballots will be available at voting sites or can be viewed at www.augustaga.gov/vote or the My Voter Page at www.mvp.sos.ga.gov/s/. For more information, contact the Board of Elections Office at 706-821-2340.

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