Tiger Woods?and Bridgestone formalized a relationship Thursday, as the brand announced it has signed the former world No. 1 to a multi-year deal to promote its golf balls.Woods, who turns 41 at the end of the month, will be featured in all advertising for the brand, including print and television ads. Hell also be on packaging and point-of-purchase displays.Financial terms were not disclosed.Finding the right golf ball is extremely important, Woods said in a statement. Its an essential part of my equipment.Woods has been evaluating new deals by having products sent to him, but he hasnt interacted much with the brands.Thats exactly what happened with Bridgestone.We supplied him with product, but we had no communication with him and didnt have any way to help influence his decision, said Corey Consuegra, director of marketing for Bridgestone Golf.In the end, Woods picked the Bridgestone Tour B-330s ball and put it in play at the Hero World Challenge a few weeks ago in the Bahamas.Tiger did a lot of testing, but this is the one that came out to his liking, said his agent, Mark Steinberg. It was always about finding out what was best for him and what he liked best before putting together the structure of a deal.The Bridgestone ball is the third brand that Tiger has used since turning pro in 1996. He used Titleist balls in the beginning of his career until 2000, when he switched to Nike. Woods will continue to be a Nike ambassador, as he has been for the past 20 years, but the company decided in the fall not to manufacture golf equipment anymore.While the golf ball market is flat like the rest of the golf industry, Consuegra said Tigers decision helps validate the credibility of the brand, whose most notable spokespeople include?Matt Kuchar, Brandt Snedeker and Fred Couples.Bridgestone is the third-most popular golf ball in the business behind Titleist and Callaway, according to industry tracking firm Golf DataTech.While the pie might not be growing, we think we can take pieces of the pie from others, and Tiger joining us is key to that plan, Consuegra said.There is one new potential challenger in the game. In the past couple of months, Costco started selling golf balls for $30 for two dozen ($1.25 a ball). The companys website shows that the balls have sold out and are getting restocked later in the month.?The Tour B-S330 sells for $45 a dozen ($3.75 a ball), which is in line with other higher-end balls.As for the other clubs, Steinberg said Tiger was still testing and no decisions had been made. At the Hero World Challenge, Woods used TaylorMade woods (driver, 3-wood, 5-wood) and a set of Nike irons he had played with in the past.There was initial buzz that Woods could be an endorser for Bob Parsons PXG brand, but that thought took a hit when Parsons told Golf Digest?he thought Woods game wasnt what it once was.We never discussed a deal with Tiger, but I assume after that comment, our odds got slimmer, Parsons told ESPN.com. Chuck Bednarik Youth Jersey . Numbers Game examines the deal that sees Michael Del Zotto and Kevin Klein switch places. The Predators Get: D Michael Del Zotto. Dallas Goedert Womens Jersey .J. -- New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz will miss the rest of the season after having surgery on his left knee. http://www.eaglesrookiestore.com/Eagles-Chuck-Bednarik-Jersey/ . Haas said he "felt a lot of pain" in his right shoulder when he slammed his racket to the ground in frustration after losing his serve at 3-3 in the first set. Dallas Goedert Youth Jersey . The CFLs leading rusher kept adding to his gaudy numbers this season and scored the winning touchdown with just over two minutes to play. The New Westminster, B.C., native plowed three yards into the end zone for the last score of a heated, see-saw battle between the two teams with the best records in the CFL. Brian Westbrook Jersey . The 18-year-old American had five birdies in her bogey-free round for a 17-under total of 196. Lee held the overnight lead but mixed three birdies with two bogeys for a 70. For the sixth season in a row, ESPN.com is ranking the top players in the NBA. Who will be the best player this season?To get the final ranking, we asked our expert panel to vote on pairs of players.LeBron James vs. Stephen Curry. Russell Westbrook vs. Kevin Durant. Damian Lillard vs. Chris Paul.We asked, Which player will be better in 2016-17? To decide, voters had to consider both the quality and the quantity of each players contributions to his teams ability to win games.Well roll out the rest of our top 200 players over the next two days. If you want to get involved in the discussion or just follow along, #NBArank is the Twitter hashtag to use. You also can follow along @ESPNNBA and on Facebook.On to the list ...9. Paul GeorgePacers | SF | @Yg_TreceLast years rank: 262016-17 projected RPPM: 5.dddddddddddd49Insider profile:?George returned in full force in 2015-16 from his horrific broken leg after a brief cameo at the end of the preceding season. With a summer to work back to full strength, he was as good as ever. His brilliant playoff performance against the Toronto Raptors solidified his standing as perhaps the Easts best two-way wing. George is on the short list of players, along with Kawhi Leonard and Jimmy Butler, who can be the primary creator on offense while shutting down the opponents best wing threat. ?Read more ?#NBArank 6-106: Anthony Davis7: Chris Paul8: James Harden9: Paul George10: Damian Lillard#NBArank 2016: The Top 200 countdown ' ' '