Associated Press
Tiger Woods brings his golf skills to Kauai.
Kauai eagerly awaits
wave of Tiger fans
Golf phenom Tiger Woods
By Trish Moore
headlines the Poipu tourney
Star-BulletinPOIPU, Kauai -- Rio Gates, a bartender at Koloa Broiler, can't wait for the onslaught of golf fans to hit Kauai's south shore this weekend when Tiger Woods headlines the MasterCard PGA Grand Slam in Poipu. He's hoping his concierge buddies at the nearby Hyatt Regency Kauai will send happy-hour seekers his way.
"I'm looking to see some celebs, give 'em some cocktails and get 'em a little tipsy," said Gates, an avid golf fan.
Gates said the restaurant has stocked up on food and liquor in anticipation of the 8,000 to 10,000 people expected at the three-day event, featuring some of professional golf's top players.
"Kauai doesn't usually get any action. This is the talk of the year," Gates said.
The event begins Sunday with a practice round, followed by a two-day tournament Monday and Tuesday, in which the players compete for a $1 million purse.
Organizers expect five times the crowd of previous years, said Michael Castillo, head golf pro at Poipu Bay Resort. Four hours of coverage each day of the tournament will be broadcast on Turner Broadcast Systems to 100 countries, he said.
Three of the players -- Tiger Woods, David Love III and Justin Leonard -- are among the top five moneymakers in golf.
"That's phenomenal," Castillo said. "It adds a lot of interest."
Economic activity on the island will surge to that of a typical Christmas week, said Margy Parker, executive director of the Poipu Beach Resort Association.
Melody Stevenson, manager of the Kauai Products Store in Koloa, said they've doubled their merchandise orders to "make sure we have enough."
Other merchants are taking a wait-and-see approach.
"We're hoping they don't all stay down at the hotels," said Marty Kuala, owner of Progressive Expressions, a surf shop in Koloa. Kuala's hoping for four or five "good days" of retailing.
More than the immediate influx of dollars into the island economy, county officials see the event as a priceless opportunity to "show the rest of the state, the nation and the world our beauty," said Gerald Dela Cruz, Kauai's director of economic development.
"We could never buy that kind of exposure," he said.
Community volunteers have pulled together to clean up south shore beaches, clear weeds along roadways and greet people at the airport, Dela Cruz said.
Lihue Airport will be "hopping" with arrivals and departures before and after the event, he said. Aloha Airlines has added 17 flights to its normal schedule.
Hawaiian Airlines still has rental car and flight packages with tournament tickets available, said an airline spokesman.
The Sheraton Kauai at Poipu, closed since being damaged by Hurricane Iniki in 1992, will open 227 rooms specially for the event, said a hotel spokeswoman. The hotel will then close to gear up for its grand opening Dec. 1.
Parker said several hotels are offering bargain room rates, as well as some tournament tickets.
