Following the El Camaleon Mayakoba’s change of allegiance earlier this year, the WWT Championship was held at the Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal at Diamante last week.
The World Wide Technology Championship was held on a Tiger Woods-designed course at Mayakoba, rather than the El Camaleon, which PGA Tour player Kelly Kraft criticized.
The WWT Championship was played at the El Cardonal at Diamante last week, marking the first-ever use of a Woods-designed course on the PGA Tour. The winner was South African Erik Van Rooyen, who won his second PGA Tour event on Sunday with an incredible nine-under-par 62.
It’s safe to say, though, that not everyone was happy with the Woods-designed setup’s debut after Kraft vented his frustrations on social media.
After shooting eight under par during his four rounds in Mexico, Kraft concluded the week in 71st place. After the match, he posted on Instagram, obviously frustrated: “About the golf, not sure where to start. I will only suggest that the @pgatour should choose the courses for these events more carefully.
“I’ve been on tour for a little while, and this wasn’t my favorite course in my opinion. Though he did thank the tournament organizers, he added, “On a side note, I will say that @wwt_inc did a great job with what they had. Better luck next week.” I appreciate your hospitality.
El Camaleon at Mayakoba, the tournament’s previous home, was acquired by LIV Golf, so El Cardonal at Diamante was serving as the event’s first-ever host. The PGA Tour decided to break off their long-standing relationship with Mayakoba following the Mexican course’s alliance with their LIV rivals.
Earlier this year, the first breakaway circuit event held in Mexico was won by Charles Howell III, four shots to the winner, at the Mayakoba setup. This was LIV’s first event of 2023. El Camaleon had hoped to host both PGA Tour and LIV events concurrently despite the contentious switch due to the animosity between the tours.
In a statement obtained by Golf.com in December 2022, a Mayakoba spokesperson said: “The PGA Tour did not prior and still has not informed Mayakoba they will be not renewing the WWTC event at Mayakoba in 2023. Their agreement remains intact as of this morning.
“Mayakoba is keen to host its PGA Tour event for the 17th year. Unless the PGA Tour will confirm, the Mayakoba event could very well remain on the PGA Tour’s 2023-2024 schedule.” Of course the Tour did eventually end their relationship with the North American resort, turning to El Cardonal at Diamante earlier this year.
Amid the criticism, designer Woods was on site this week after being pictured on Tuesday making his way around the course whilst those competing kicked off their practice. Woods himself has not competed competitively since pulling out of the Masters Tournament in April.
Since sustaining serious injuries to his right leg in a car accident in Los Angeles in February 2021, the 15-time major champion’s playing career has been intermittent. Woods is reportedly getting close to making a comeback, and it might happen at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas next month, where he will serve as the tournament host, seven months after his most recent injury.
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