Players and tournament officials said Tuesday they were disappointed that Tiger Woods would miss his charity's golf tournament in Thousand Oaks but that they respected his decision.
"Yeah, I'm disappointed not to be able to play against him," said Stewart Cink, winner of the British Open this year and one of 18 players in the Chevron World Challenge at Sherwood Country Club. And for the fans, Cink said, "with him not being here that's unfortunate for them."
But the event's ticket holders were not demanding a substantial number of refunds after Woods opted not to play this week in the wake of his car accident that sparked a global media sensation, the tournament's director said.
"It's not like our switchboard was inundated," said Greg McLaughlin, president and chief executive of the Tiger Woods Foundation, the charity that benefits from the four-day tournament that starts Thursday.
"It hasn't been an overwhelming number" of refund requests, he said. "Traditionally what will happen in these situations is it's less than 2% or 3%, not big numbers."
General admission ticket prices range from $30 to $40 per day.
Citing his injuries that included cuts on his face, Woods said in a statement that he wouldn't play in the tournament and he canceled a news conference scheduled Tuesday at the country club. He hasn't spoken publicly since the accident happened early last Friday.
On Tuesday, the Florida Highway Patrol said Woods was cited for careless driving because of the accident, plus a $164 fine, but he will not face criminal charges.
Since the accident, a frenzy of media speculation and gossip has flourished about exactly what caused Woods' crash outside of his Orlando-area mansion -- in which his car hit a fire hydrant and a neighbor's tree -- and whether it stemmed from a dispute with his wife. On Tuesday an attorney for Woods' neighbors who dialed 911 after the crash said the golfer did not appear to be driving under the influence and showed no signs of having been in a fight.
As the tournament's players practiced Tuesday in Thousand Oaks, a television in the club's media center was airing yet another story about Woods' accident and marriage -- not on the Golf Channel but on the celebrity show "Access Hollywood."
And on Monday night, Woods was rich fodder for comedian Jay Leno, who opened his network show with 10 consecutive jokes about the golfer's crash.
