*Developer blamed for $55 million celebrity payday

During the boom times, any self-respecting property developer would not be seen dead at a resort launch without the presence of at least one minor celebrity.

The practice of giving away a suite to a famous personality was common practice. The additional PR, kudos and attention more than paid for the cost.

At the high-end of the scale were deals like Steven Gerrard Towers, which cost builder in the region of a million British pounds.

However, reports this weekend show that in August 2008, UAE developer Tatweer decided to redefine the sale of payments for celebrity endorsements by offering Tiger Woods $98.8m for his backing of the shelved
Tiger Woods Dubai Resort, paying him half of the money upfront.

To put this in perspective, $98.8m was $6.6 million more than the $92.2 million Woods had earned in prize money over his entire career up until that point, making the endorsement unprecedented in the history of world sport.

Shortly after Woods received his $55 million upfront payment, Lehman Brothers collapsed and the financial system spun into turmoil, leaving the Dubai property market as one of its many victims.

Interestingly, a survey of Dubai residents by Arabian Business blames the developer and shows that only 16% believe he should return the money.

It is unlikely whether we will every see a property-related deal of this scale in our lifetimes. Woods would have been foolish not to take the cash but he is fortunate he did not receive it from an American or European developer. If he had, the public and the press would now be baying for blood.

Source: Global edge

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