11/05/24
November 29, 2010
The decline and fall of brand Tiger Woods: is a story best told by a journey, along the Emirates Road to the south of Dubai and then left down an unmarked road. One year after Tiger crashed his car into a tree, Lawrence Donnegan visits what's left of The Tiger Woods Dubai, golf's chosen one's first foray into course design. In September 2008, it was moving units rapidly and being built at a furious pace. Two years on, no one seems to know what will become of the half built development.
He might have thought you were the repo man.
posted by owlhouse at 07:33 AM on November 29, 2010
Get you some Perkins swag. Much lower buy-in levels. The combo breakfast can't be more than $6.99
The coffee? Bottomless cup.
posted by beaverboard at 07:46 AM on November 29, 2010
It all is forgotten if he ever starts winning again. Fans forgive and forget anything for some wins.
posted by bperk at 03:50 PM on November 29, 2010
The article is good, but I am not sure that the status of the Dubai project is the best evidence of Woods' waning brand. There are all manner of foundering real estate projects in Dubai that are not tied to an individual or corporate brand that is foundering -- speak to any architect at an international firm and he/she can usually list multiple projects he/she is involved in that are on hiatus or that have been terminated. The loss of $35MM in sponsorship deals overall is a better point of entry, but then the author would not have had an excuse to travel to Dubai.
posted by holden at 05:36 PM on November 29, 2010
Jeremy Clarkson: Is the Tiger Woods brand in trouble? To find out, I went to Dubai...
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 06:32 PM on November 29, 2010
Damn editors, always counting beans . . . gonzo journalism would've been stillborn without the questionable expense account.
posted by outonleave at 08:50 PM on November 29, 2010
There are all manner of foundering real estate projects in Dubai that are not tied to an individual or corporate brand that is foundering
Which makes me VERY anxious to visit in the very near future so I can see these monstrosities of excessive (temporary) wealth, before they are abandoned.
posted by grum@work at 09:24 PM on November 29, 2010
In fairness, Donnegan was in Dubai for the European Tour's end of season tournament and went the extra mile (literally) to go and find the Tiger Woods resort and see what had become of it.
posted by JJ at 06:56 AM on November 30, 2010
My girlfriend used to work in property and was heading the international department of a large London property agency in 2008. The Tiger Woods Dubai was the talk of the town and they had people falling over themselves to invest in it, even though the cheapest property on the place cost about $10 million.
She was given some caps and shirts emblazoned with the logos, which naturally I snaffled for my own use. At the US Open in 2009, I stood next to the practice putting green while Tiger was warming up. He kept looking over at me. It was beginning to freak me out. I finally worked out why. I was wearing one of his Tiger Woods Dubai caps, the rest of which had presumably been recalled as the project idled.