Tiger Is Host With the Most

What is it called when eight of the top 10 players in the world show up to play?

Normally, it’s a major championship, but starting today it’s something entirely different. The $3.8-million Target World Challenge might be only an off-season, 72-hole exhibition, but it also has an impressive field and an equally impressive purse.

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, the top two ranked golfers, lead the 16-player field at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, where first place is worth $1 million and last place is worth $130,000.

“It has been great to have events like this so we don’t have to travel and play overseas,” Woods said. “We can stay right here and play. For me, it’s great coming back to Southern California, where I was born and raised.”

Third-ranked Ernie Els and fourth-ranked Sergio Garcia are the only players in the top 10 who are not here. Els, who won last week in South Africa, is hosting his own tournament next week. Garcia went on a safari to rest after a hectic schedule that began with the Tour Championship, then the Volvo Masters and tournaments in Singapore, Japan and South Africa.

The rest of the field at Sherwood: Retief Goosen, David Toms, Vijay Singh, Padraig Harrington, Davis Love III, Colin Montgomerie, Chris DiMarco, Jim Furyk, Nick Price, Bernhard Langer, Michael Campbell, Bob Estes, Rich Beem and Mark O’Meara.

Montgomerie, Langer, Beem and O’Meara received special invitations to play. The others qualified as a result of their ranking and accepted invitations.

The event, hosted by Woods, is the second-richest off-season tournament, second only to the $4.06-million Nedbank Golf Challenge, which Els won a week ago, collecting $2 million.

Woods says he takes his tournament more seriously than anyone else.

“Because whatever I win, I donate to my foundation,” he said.

Last year, Woods gave his winner’s share of $1 million to the Tiger Woods Foundation.

Jack Nicklaus designed the 7,025-yard layout at Sherwood, where the Shark Shootout was staged for 12 years. This is the third year Woods’ tournament has been at Sherwood.

“We want to build a base and stay here for a while,” Woods said.