On December 30, Phil Mickelson self-proclaimed the $8 million winner of the Player Impact Program, but the official result released on Wednesday by the PGA Tour crowned Tiger Woods.
Astonishing reversal of the situation on reading the official ranking of the Player Impact Program 2021 of the PGA Tour, Tiger Woods is finally ahead Phil Mickelson who announced his victory on his rival’s birthday in what can be considered a “popularity contest”.
The results are in for the inaugural Player Impact Program.
1. Tiger Woods
2. Phil Mickelson
3. Rory McIlroy
4. Jordan Spieth
5. Bryson DeChambeau
6. Justin Thomas
7. Dustin Johnson
8. Brooks Koepka
9. Jon Rahm
10. Bubba Watson— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 2, 2022
There is no doubt that, in view of recent events which have seriously damaged the image of Phil Mickelson in recent weeks, and the immense popular expectation around Tiger Woods, this result seems more in line with reality. Kevin Na, and Collin Morikawa 11th and therefore first unrewarded, were quick to react to the announcement of the PGA Tour
Tiger Woods wins the $8Mil PIP! I’m all for paying @TigerWoods because he made us all richer but he didn’t hit 1 shot in 2021. @PGATOUR how is this possible ????????♂️ ???? also I thought @PhilMickelson won. Did this result have any affect in the last 2 weeks? haha ????
– Kevin Na (@kevinna915) March 2, 2022
Woke up to still being #11 on PIP. But if you don’t believe me, too bad because anything after 10th doesn’t matter. Happy ???? day #Co11in
— Collin Morikawa (@collin_morikawa) March 2, 2022
The first PIP, awarded $40 million to the top 10 players in a ranking established from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021. It was calculated based on data linked to 5 criteria.
- Internet searches: number of times a player’s name is searched on the Internet
- Media coverage: number of unique press articles that include a player’s name
- Social Media: Social media score considering a player’s reach, conversation, and engagement metrics;
- TV Sponsor Exposure: Duration in hours that a player’s sponsor logo(s) appear on screen during Saturday and Sunday PGA TOUR broadcasts
- Awareness: A player’s overall awareness score among the general US population.
For 2022, the bonus pool will grow by $10 million, to $50 million in total.
Harry How/Getty Images for The Match/AFP
