Tiger Woods to make Asia trip

• Tiger Woods to visit Shanghai and Tokyo in Asia trip
• Last visited in 2011, where his ‘presence was electric’
• All but confirmed for the Memorial Tournament from June 4-7

Tiger Woods will make a whistle-stop trip to Asia tomorrow to help stoke local interest in the sport of golf and inspire athletes in China and Japan.

The 14-time major champion will make his first stop in Shanghai tomorrow, location of the current Volvo China Open on the European Tour, before travelling to Tokyo on Sunday.

The visit comes two weeks after his return to competitive golf at the Masters following ten weeks out where he deemed that his performances were ‘unacceptable for tournament golf’.

“When Tiger visited Asia in 2011, his presence was absolutely electric” – Marc Patrick

Tiger Woods finished T17 at Augusta National and despite never being in contention with winner Jordan Spieth, he shot two rounds below 70, the first time he had achieved that at the Masters since 2011, allaying fears of his demise.

And what the 2015 Masters did prove is that Woods is still very much the star attraction at any major tournament he competes in and, unsurprisingly, he has the same effect in Asia.

“When Tiger visited Asia in 2011, his presence was absolutely electric,” said Marc Patrick, vice president of global marketing at Nike Golf. “He really connected with the young athletes and inspired so many golf enthusiasts.

“We believe this generated tremendous energy around the sport of golf in Asia and we look forward to continued success again this year.”

During the visit, Woods will conduct golf clinics and interact with young athletes, while sharing his insights, knowledge and love of the game with golf fans, athletes and members of the media.

After the Masters, Woods said that he wouldn’t be playing again ‘for a while’, and Jack Nicklaus revealed yesterday that the 39-year-old does plan to play in the Memorial Tournament from June 4-7, which could be the next event on his schedule if he doesn’t play the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass next month.

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