In the opening week of competition the weather was probably too ideal, as the sunny, early spring conditions were accompanied by minimal breeze.
It added other problems included new competition, unseasonable weather in the first half of 2000, and more recently, the tightening of trade credit and curtailment of inventory shipments.
The Glastonbury Festival is considering dropping its pre-registration system after competition, poor weather and – in the opinion of some – the decision to book the rapper Jay-Z led to slow ticket sales when lines opened at the weekend.
On the day of the competition the weather was brutal and the course treacherous; more than a third of the starters were unable to complete the race owing to gusty winds and an icy course, and eight required medical attention.
CSFB believes that Citi is better positioned than its competition to weather the unsavory environment: "For Citi, marketing and acquisition expertise, cross-sell opportunities, and low/declining unit operating costs offer some offset to the industry headwinds.
Competition and weather affected testing and World Cup runs for the two-week time period.
The provisional fixture list was released on 14 June 2007, but was subject to change in the event of clashes with other competitions, inclement weather, or matches being selected for television coverage.
Watson and Holmes will bring their own variety, and the others will have to show they can withstand the crucible of match-play competition in inclement weather.
"Similarly, a company must disclose the significant risks that it faces, whether those risks are due to increased competition or severe weather.
A spokesman said at the time that marginal weather, competition from larger resorts, dwindling attendance and financial losses forced the closing.
