Golf's Tiger: The Story of Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods changed the way that people see golf internationally. Many consider him to be one of the best players of all time.

Who doesn’t know Tiger Woods? He’s the best golf player in recent memory. Still, maybe you don’t know his story all too well. In this article, we’ll be telling you about his beginnings, his accomplishments, and his playing style.

The beginnings of the legend that’s Tiger Woods

Eldrick Tont Woods was born in 1975 in California. His father was Earl Woods, who was African-American with some Asiatic ancestors. His mother, Kultida Woods was a Thai woman of Chinese descent. From a very young age, people noticed his passion for golf. By the age of two he was already trying to pick up golf clubs and hit balls with them.

His father nicknamed him “Tiger” in honor of a fellow soldier that he fought alongside within the Vietnam War, named Nguyen Phong. Phong saved Earl’s life. With a nickname like that, the young boy’s destiny was bound to be a great one.

Before the age of 20, he jumped to fame after winning the Amateur US Open. In 1996, at the age of 21, he decided to go professional and he made a huge debut. In just three short months he won two professional tournaments.

One year later, he left all golf fans with their mouths open when he took one of the four biggest tournaments of the year – the Augusta Masters. Tiger Woods holds his position as the youngest golfer to win a Major.

Woods would have to wait three years to take home another title. Meanwhile, though, he started a whole revolution for this sport.

Titles and more titles for Tiger

In 2000, Woods won three of the four Grand Slams that year. That’s a feat no one had been able to match since Ben Hogan did it in 1953. That season he took the US Open with a record-breaking performance. He also won the British Open in St. Andrews and the US PGA Championship.

Afterward, in 2001, he won the Augusta Masters. He then went on to be the only current golf champion of the four Grand Slams even though he didn’t get them all in the same year.

Tiger Woods’ has had a great influence on the golfing world. You could say that golf can be divided into the pre-Tiger Woods and post-Tiger Woods eras. For example, in 1997, the winner of the Masters would receive less than $500,000. In 2005, on the other hand, the winner of this tournament would get more than 10 million dollars.

From the death of his father to temporary retirement

The year 2006 wasn’t a good year for Tiger Woods. That’s because his father died. On top of that, he couldn’t make it to the Masters for the first time ever. Three years later though, he would prove that he wasn’t just great individually, but on teams as well.

He took on the Presidents Cup Challenge, which pits some of the best in the US against a team made up of golfers from the rest of the world (except Europe).

In 2009, Tiger had a car accident in Florida and suffered various back injuries. Because of that, he didn’t compete in tournaments for a while. On top of all of that, his wife caught him having an extramarital affair. In December he announced he was retiring from the golf course to devote himself to his family.

In April of 2010, he went back to the Masters and from then on won smaller tournaments than the Grand Slams. He returned to the major leagues in 2018. He got his last important title at the Augusta Masters of 2019.

Summary of Tiger Woods’ greatest titles

Tiger has 15 Grand Slams under his belt throughout his career. He’s the golfer with the second-most majors, right after Jack Nicklaus, who has 18.

Woods has won the Masters Tournament in Augusta five times (1997, 2001, 2002, 2005, and 2019). As for the US Open, he’s won that three times – 2000, 2002, and 2008. He’s won the British Open three times 2000, 2005, and 2006. On four occasions, he won the PGA tournament (1999, 2000, 2006, and 2007).

On top of all that, he’s racked up eight victories in the WGC Invitational, seven WGC-Cadillacs, three Championship Tours, and three WGC Match Plays. He’s the only golfer to win the FedEx Cup twice.

Finally, the Californian has won 82 PGA Tours and 184 Top 10 competitions. In the US circuit, he was the leader in terms of annual wins 10 times (between 1997 and 2013). As for the European Tour, he has 40 victories and 90 Top 10s there.