Frys.com Open Tournament Director Ian Knight announced today that Tiger Woods has committed to the 2011 Frys.com Open, scheduled to be played at CordeValle, Oct. 5-9.
“Obviously, we are very excited Tiger has decided to play in our event,” said Kathy Kolder, Frys.com Open Tournament Chairperson and Executive Vice President of Fry’s Electronics. “The boost in marquee value he brings will not only help the tournament and increase the tournament’s economic impact in San Jose, but it will also help us raise more funds for participating charities.”
Woods, who says he is healthy for the first time in many months, wants to add competitive rounds in a PGA TOUR event. He also wants to continue to hone his new swing in a tournament environment now that Presidents Cup Captain Fred Couples recently named him to the U.S. Team for the November matches in Australia. Woods has not visited CordeValle; however, he is well aware that his fellow professionals gave the course favorable reviews last year. Additionally, his agent, Mark Steinberg, visited the Club during the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach last year.
Born in California, Woods is very familiar with the San Jose area, having attended Stanford where he played on the school’s golf team in 1995 and 1996. While at Stanford, Woods won the NCAA individual championship in 1996. As a professional he has experienced great success in the state of California, winning a total of 16 PGA TOUR events – the most recent being the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines where he defeated 2010 Frys.com Open defending champion Rocco Mediate in a 19-hole playoff.
Tournament President Duke Butler, a veteran of PGA TOUR business, has a long and respectful relationship with Woods and Steinberg. In recent years, Butler has introduced Steinberg to Fry’s Electronics, an electronics retailer with corporate headquarters located in San Jose, Calif. CEO John Fry and Kolder have a long term strategy to make the tournament prominent, possibly moving it to The Institute, a course Fry’s Electronics owns in Morgan Hill, Calif., no earlier than 2013.
ABOUT THE FRYS.COM OPEN
The Frys.com Open is part of the PGA TOUR’s Fall Series and features a full-field (132 players), four-day tournament with a $5 million purse and $900,000 payout to the winner. Now in its sixth year, the Frys.com Open has raised more than $3 million for charities, with more than $800,000 awarded in 2010 alone. The tournament will be played Oct. 5-9, 2011 at CordeValle in San Martin, Calif., located just 25 minutes south of title sponsor Fry’s Electronics headquarters in San Jose, Calif. For more information go to www.frysopengolf.com or find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/frysopengolf.
ABOUT FRY’S ELECTRONICS
Fry’s Electronics, Inc. was founded in 1985 in Sunnyvale, California in a 20,000 square foot location by the three Fry brothers, John, Randy, and Dave; and Kathy Kolder. Fry’s was founded as a Silicon Valley retail electronics store to provide a one-stop-shopping environment for the hi-tech professional. Fry’s continues to keep hi-tech professionals supplied with products representing the latest technological trends and advances in the personal computer marketplace. Fry’s retails over 50,000 electronic items within each store, now totaling 34. There are currently 8 stores in Northern California, 9 stores in Southern California, 8 stores in Texas, 2 stores in Arizona, 2 stores in Georgia, and 1 store each in Oregon, Nevada, Washington, Illinois, and Indiana. The stores range in size from 50,000 to over 180,000 square feet. For more information call (408) 350-1484 or visit www.frys.com.
