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Tag: Tiger Woods

  • Tiger headlines 160th PGA Championship field

    Tiger headlines 160th PGA Championship field

    Tiger Woods and the world’s 103 top-ranked golfers were among those named as the field was announced for next week’s 106th PGA Championship at Valhalla.

    Woods, a 15-time major winner, has struggled to walk four rounds in tournaments since suffering severe leg injuries in a 2021 car crash but finished 60th in last month’s Masters and says he hopes to play once a month through the US and British Opens.

    Woods, ranked 801, has accepted a special invitation into next month’s US Open.

    He withdrew after three rounds in 2022 in his most recent PGA Championship start, skipping last year after ankle surgery.

    Woods and four-time major winner Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland have each won PGA Championship titles at Valhalla – Woods in 2000 and McIlroy in 2014 in his most recent major triumph.

    The PGA field includes 33 major winners, 16 of them former PGA Championship winners.

    Two vacancies remain in the field of 156, awaiting winners of this week’s PGA Tour events if they are not already qualified for the showdown at Louisville, Kentucky.

    The lineup includes top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, who won his second Masters title last month, and the rest of the top 103 players in the official world golf rankings.

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    Scheffler is skipping this week’s PGA Tour signature event to be with wife Meredith as she prepares to have a baby.

    Defending champion Brooks Koepka of the United States is among 16 players from the LIV Golf League who will compete in the year’s second major tournament.

    Other LIV players from the world’s top 100 include fifth-ranked Jon Rahm, England’s 17th -ranked Tyrrell Hatton, Australia’s Cameron Smith and Lucas Herbert, Poland’s Adrian Meronk, Chile’s Joaquin Niemann and American Patrick Reed.

    Other major winners from LIV include Bryson DeChambeau, Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Martin Kaymer.

    American Talor Gooch, last year’s LIV season champion, was invited into his fifth consecutive PGA Championship. His best result was a share of 20th  in 2022 but he missed the cut last year.

    The field includes 21 club professionals, 20 qualifiers and Michael Block, who returns after sharing 15th last year at Oak Hill.

  • Woods to make season debut at Riviera

    Woods to make season debut at Riviera

    Tiger Woods will make his first PGA Tour appearance of the year at the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, the golfer has confirmed.

     “Excited to be host next week,” Woods posted on social media.

    The 48-year-old last competed in an official PGA Tour event at the 2023 Masters tournament in April but played in two events in December.

    Woods played with his son Charlie at the PNC Championship in Orlando on December 18 after playing in the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas earlier in the month.

    The 15-times major champion, has struggled since suffering severe leg injuries in a 2021 car crash and he underwent ankle surgery after the Masters in April.

    The Genesis Invitational is held from February 15-18 and Woods is the host of the event.

    Last month Woods said he was ending his long-standing partnership with sportswear company Nike and it will be interesting to see what equipment and clothing he features in at Riviera.

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    After playing at the PNC Championship, Woods said he felt in shape to carry out his plan of monthly competitive action this year.

     “I’ll be able to walk and play,” Woods said after the final round of the Orlando event.

     “We’ve been working out hard, been able to recover. We’ve been training every day, which is great. It’s been nice to knock off a lot of the rust and some of the doubt that I’ve had because quite frankly I haven’t hit a shot that counted in a long time,” he said.

    The Masters will be held at Augusta National the week of April 8.

    The 2024 schedule sees the PGA Championship in May, the US Open in June and the British Open in July.

  • Tiger Woods cuts short pro-am at Hero World Challenge

    Tiger Woods cuts short pro-am at Hero World Challenge

    Tiger Woods opted to cut short his pro-am after just nine holes yesterday at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas.

    While Woods did not speak to reporters after the apparently abrupt exit, tournament officials and Woods’ caddie/business partner Rob McNamara were aware of the situation long before it played out.

    “He decided this morning. He’s fine,” McNamara said, per Golf Digest.

    “He’s got 72 holes ahead of him. He just wants to be ready for tomorrow,” Hero MotoCorp executive chairman Dr. Pawan Munjal said.

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    Multiple media outlets said Woods displayed a slight limp but no other physical issues ahead of his first tournament in more than seven months after undergoing surgery on his right ankle in April.

    Woods, who turns 48 next month, limped through the first three rounds of the Masters in April before withdrawing due to plantar fasciitis. His only other start in 2023 was a T45 at The Genesis Invitational.

    The 15-time major champion has struggled to walk 18 holes since his February 2021 car accident that resulted in severe injuries to his right foot and leg.

    Woods is slated to tee off alongside good friend Justin Thomas today at 11:52 a.m.

  • Tiger Woods sued over death of drunk bartender

    Tiger Woods has been sued by parents of a bartender at his Florida restaurant who died in a drink driving accident after allegedly being over-served alcohol.

    TMZ reported that the parents of Nicholas Immesberger, who died last December at age 24, filed the lawsuit saying their son had worked as a bartender at The Woods in Jupiter, Florida, and knew the golf star personally.

    The news broke hours after Woods played his opening practice round for the 101st PGA Championship, the year’s second major golf tournament which starts Thursday at Bethpage Black on Long Island in New York.

    Woods snapped an 11-year major win drought by winning the Masters last month and seeks his 16th career major title this week. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom last week at a White House ceremony.

    The restaurant’s manager is Erica Herman, who is Woods’s girlfriend and, according to TMZ, recruited Immesberger to the restaurant.

    According to TMZ, Immesberger finished his shift on December 10 but stayed at The Woods to drink at the restaurant and was allegedly served to the point of “severe intoxication” before being sent out to his car.

    Immesberger lost control of his car that evening while driving home and crashed, dying in the accident, according to the report, which also said Immesberger had a blood alcohol level of .256, more than three times the legal limit.

    Read Also: Tiger Woods, golf and life

    The family claims Woods and Herman knew Immesberger had a habitual problem with alcohol but allowed him to be served anyway.

    The lawsuit alleges Woods and Herman had been drinking with Immesberger just days before the crash and “reasonably should have known” he was a “habitual drunkard,” according to TMZ.

    Immesberger’s parents sued Woods directly claiming he “was directly responsible for ensuring that his employees and management … were not over serving its employees/customers,” according to the report.

    The lawsuit was filed in Palm Beach County, Florida. It seeks medical costs and funeral damages plus other “appropriate damages.”

  • Trump awards medal of freedom to business partner Tiger Woods

    Donald Trump has awarded Tiger Woods the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest US civilian honour.

    Woods, who fought back to a dramatic Masters win last month following years plagued by injury, is by far the youngest golfer to receive the distinction.

    But the president’s decision to honour a 43-year-old sportsman who is his long-time friend and business partner has raised questions about whether the award was merited.

    Trump is the fourth golfer to receive the medal, following Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Charlie Sifford.

    Woods dominated golf for more than a decade, but went 11 years without a major until winning the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club in April in a comeback which captivated the sporting world.

    Last month, following Woods’ Masters win in Georgia, he tweeted that he would honour the golfer in recognition of his ”incredible Success & Comeback in Sports (Golf) and, more importantly, LIFE.”

    Woods ranks second in PGA Tour wins, one shy of Sam Snead’s all-time record of 82. His 15 major tournament victories are three less than Nicklaus, who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the age of 65 by George W. Bush.

    Read Also: Trump to make state visit to UK in June

    Mr Trump hailed Woods as a “great guy” on Monday. He added: “He introduced countless new people to the sport of golf, from every background and walk of life … Tiger Woods is a global symbol of American excellence, devotion and drive.”

    The president has eagerly leapt on the Woods bandwagon and has been using his fame to attract fans to his properties for decades. Following the golfer’s first Masters win in 1997, Mr Trump got Woods to show up at his Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey – prompting thousands of fans to turn up.

    The pair have also golfed together several times, as well as striking business deals.

    Golfers at the president’s club in Doral, Florida, can stay at the Tiger Woods Villa. At a ribbon cutting ceremony in 2014, Woods lavished praise on the future presidential candidate, calling changes he made to the club “phenomenal.”

    In Dubai, Woods designed an 18-hole course – due to open later this year – to be managed by The Trump Organisation.

    “You have to ask whether it’s his true belief Tiger Woods deserves this award or whether he’s doing it to help his business,” said Jordan Libowitz, communications director at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a left-leaning public policy group.

    Democratic strategist Don Calloway told The Hill Woods receiving the medal was “Trump giving an award to his buddy”.

    “I think there’s a whole lot of people who are in the line for the Presidential Medal of Freedom before brother Eldrick,” he added, using the golfer’s birth name.

    Woods has been criticised in the past for his association with Mr Trump. While other sportsmen have taken a public stand against the president’s policies such as the Muslim travel ban, Woods has insisted he is not political.

    Rick Reilly, who wrote a book about Trump’s golfing entitled Commander in Cheat, said Woods had brought golf to people of colour around the world, while the president has promoted it as a sport for the rich. Woods should have declined the medal, he suggested.

    “I can see how it would be hard to resist, but I still think it’s hypocritical to do it,” Mr Reilly said.

    But Christopher Devine, an associate professor of political science at the University of Dayton, said Woods deserved the honour, regardless of whether Mr Trump was motivated by his business interests.

    “If President Obama or Hillary Clinton had given the award to Tiger, no one would have batted an eye,” said the academic, who has studied the history of the medal.

    Mr Devine also noted previous presidents have presented the award to supporters and political donors, including Barack Obama. Mr Trump’s predecessor in the White House gave the Medal of Freedom to Bruce Springsteen, who performed in concerts to support his election efforts. He also awarded it to his vice-president, Joe Biden.

    www.independent.co.uk

     

  • Golf: Tiger to return to Japan at Zozo Championship in October

    Tiger Woods will return to Japan for the first time since 2006 to compete in the inaugural Zozo Championship in October, the Masters champion said on Wednesday.

    Woods called Japan “one of my favourite countries” in a tweet announcing his decision to play the PGA Tour’s first official event in the Asian country.

    “It’s going to be a fun fall.”

    READ ALSO: Tiger Woods, golf and life

    The 43-year-old American won his 15th major title when he came from behind to earn his fifth green jacket in Augusta earlier this month, ending an 11-year major title drought.

    He last teed up in Japan 13 years ago at the Dunlop Phoenix, where he lost to Padraig Harrington in a playoff.

    The Zozo Championship will be held at the Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club from Oct. 24 to Oct. 27. (Reuters/NAN)

  • Out of the woods

    We made it, against the dark prophesies of pundits. He was written off as the icon of the sport. Not only that, he was not supposed to be a highflyer anymore and not worthy of an attention other than as a relic of a past grandeur.

    But Tiger Woods roared back, and the rest of the golf world cowered. Some had said he had been prowling around a major win in the past year. At one point in the final of the British Open in 2018, he held the lead, but he could not hold on. That temporary majesty was even counted against him as a marker of his loss of resilience. Tiger Woods never had a lead in the final or fourth round of a major and cede it to another player. Such magical feats happened in his prime.

    Some critics in this year’s tournaments described him as reliable, but not spectacular. But if he had to give the world a rude awakening, it was only classy to do it where his legend began – at Augusta National, the lush, breath-taking magnificence of a golf course, with its long, treacherous fairways, hazards, bunkers, roughs and greens.

    Tiger returned to the golf tournament where in 1997 he benumbed the world – The Masters. Then he was a young, spry player, with almost immature mien and exuberant hand pumps. In 2019, he was a balding 43-year-old, more muscular, and the field was a generation of upcoming, energetic and young players of the internet age. He was, in fact, fighting against the sort of generation he was when he conquered golf and rid it of some of its snob factor. It set in motion a run that would mow down golf course after golf course, player after ingenious player and would earn him the number one spot for the longest time any player has ever held it in the game, or any sport of active players.

    But in between when he won 14 majors and his latest miracle, Tiger lost his growl. It was a subdued man of marital woes, who confronted a scandal of bimbo eruptions, and a messy and public divorce. Woods fell out of favour, not only in the eyes of his colleagues, but the world of moral superiority. He lost virtually all sponsors, threatening his status as the bourgeoning first world sports billionaire. Nike, no longer into golf kits, hung around the dwindled man, who was compelled to stand beside his mother to utter an apology to a world still unsure what would become of an athlete of the kind the world had never seen.

    That was not the end of his woes. He sustained what many thought were career-ending injuries. He underwent a series of surgeries, including an intricate back-fusion, a consequence of flagellations he had suffered as he beat the field many a time.

    His pathetic picture still resonates of when he was lined up before law enforcement for driving under the influence; that is, drunk on the wheel.  Once he attended a Master’s dinner almost like a cripple, his body suffused with medication. Less than two years ago, he himself confessed he was not sure he would ever play golf again, and the world was reconciling itself to a sport post-Tiger and focusing on breeding new champions. There has never been any like him. Players have emerged, especially young ones – Spieth, Garcia, Johnson, Mcllroy. Their insurgences have fallen short with flashes like comets.

    He still has three more majors to match Jack Nicklaus’ major record of 18. That is what keeps him up at night and in practice at dawn. But his story, recorded as the greatest comeback in sports, is not ended as we watch, even now, the greatest golfer the world has ever known. It is as much a modern moral allegory as a physical triumph.

  • Tiger Woods, golf and life

    IT is perhaps no mere coincidence that the two monumental events occurred about the same time. One, a human tragedy turned triumph; the other a calamity that has bred global amity and empathy.

    I speak of the iconic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, the 855-year-old building which was hit by a strange blaze on Monday, one day after the Palm Sunday ahead of Easter, the season of triumph of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, a time of renewal, resurrection and redemption.

    The other event is no less instructive in its significance and symbolism – the triumph of Eldrick Tont “Tiger” Woods, the legendary golfer whose story of revival is, perhaps, the biggest comeback miracle in sporting history. Amazing. Magical. Simply incredible.

    Tiger knew he was destined for greatness. As a kid, he had boasted of beating the best. He had won 15 majors, second to Jack Nicklaus’ 18, before the comeback win at Augusta on Sunday – his fifth. He was on the way to being “the greatest” – what Edson Arantes do Nascimento, widely known as Pele, is to soccer and Mohammed Ali was to boxing.

    He was the toast of the golfing world. Many saw him as the greatest man to have ever swung a club. His were classic shots that sent spectators screaming and yelling, “Tiger!”. All that collapsed as the star plunged into one trouble after another. There were scandals – of infidelity and salacious stories of concupiscence – drink-driving, injuries and surgeries, rejection and depression. His health failed as he had to undergo surgeries. After allegations of infidelity, Tiger crashed his SUV and a string of speculations followed. He issued a statement on his website, accepting responsibility for his action. “This situation is my fault and it’s obviously embarrassing to my family and me. I’m human and I’m not perfect. I will definitely make sure this doesn’t happen again,” Woods said.

    Then golf began to fail him. He lost form. He even took a break from the game he loved with incredible passion. He checked into a sex rehab. Tiger was written off by golf purists and pundits as an old story.

    The superstar who raked in millions from endorsements and sponsorships could no longer attract them. Sponsors withdrew in droves to save their reputation. A paradise lost. Tiger was lonely. But Nike, the sporting goods giant, stood by the superstar. So did the Swiss watchmaker, Tag Heuer. They said Tiger’s personal life was not their business. Now Nike’s shares are surging, investors are cheering and the world is celebrating Tiger’s “tigritude “.

    President Donald Trump, former President Barack Obama, Tennis star Serena Williams and many other dignitaries joined the celebration of the great comeback.

    As I walked smartly to the tee box on the ninth hole at the MicCom Golf Club in Ada, Osun State – Nigeria’s first privately -owned golf facility – last Saturday, I chatted with the pro with whom I was playing. “Have you been watching the Masters? Tiger is doing well and he may just be on the winning way again.” Najeem Sofela, one of Nigeria’s best, smiled derisively. “Tiger? No. He can’t win. His time is gone. He himself said so some two years ago that he could no longer do all that he used to do with golf. The injuries and age have affected him.”

    Sofela and many other golf enthusiasts across the globe were shocked on Sunday as Tiger made his last putt in the final round and won his fifth Masters by a shot. For a moment, he was frozen in his thought. It all felt like a dream. Then, he screamed, punched the air and shook hands with the other players before grabbing his caddie for a big hug. Tiger then walked down the gallery to his family. His son sped  as fast as he could, jumped up at him and buried his head in his chest. His mum was clapping. The golf idol’s face was wreathed in smiles. For moments, mother and son hugged each other. It was so emotional.

    At 43, Tiger became the second oldest to ever win the Masters, golf’s premier league; the El-Clasico. It was his fifth, the first since 2005 and 15th major title of his career; he last won in 2008 at the US Open. Now Jack Nicklaus’18 major’s record is in sight.

    Tiger’s amazing comeback will be well appreciated as a miracle when juxtaposed with the stories of some other giants who fell and failed to rise again. Mike ‘Iron’ Tyson conquered the heavyweight world the way no boxer his age ever did. Mohammed “the greatest” Ali had finesse. He churned out rhymes like a master poet, predicting with accuracy the round in which an opponent would fall. With his deft footwork, “the Louisville lips” brought showmanship into the game. But Tyson was “the beast” for his clinical finishing and raw energy as well as the display of that animal instinct that got his opponents knocked down–and out –fast.

    Tyson lived big. He had so much money. In one day, he bought dozens of Mercedes Benz cars for his friends. He kept wild animals as pets. Then fate – that unseen hand in human affairs – barged in to knock out the 5-foot-11,200 plus pugilist. He was found guilty of raping an 18-year-old beauty pageant contestant, Desiree Washington. Tyson was jailed. He lost form and fame. His star dimmed. When trouble comes, as they say, it does not just rain; it pours. His daughter died. It was such a pity to see the man who inflicted so much pain on opponents cry like a baby. He started begging for roles in movies. Now, Tyson is into cannabis farming.

    American football star O.J. Simpson had all a man could desire. Money, fame, influence and more. He was a small god, worshipped by millions who love America’s number one game. In 1995, OJ’s life took a tragic turn. He was accused of murdering his wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ronald Goldman in Los Angeles. The mainly black six-man jury freed OJ, but the sensational trial divided America along racial lines. A judge in Florida asked this reporter how the matter was perceived in Nigeria (the trial was televised) . She nodded in agreement when I told her that many felt OJ did it, but there was no proof.

    Simpson eventually went to jail for robbery after storming a hotel to retrieve his memorabilia. He was armed. At 61, it was a terrible way to end an exciting life of a celebrity

    Music great Michael “Wacko” Jackson fought hard to retrieve his falling career; he failed. The “king of pop” faced child molestation charges in 2004 and every move he made to rekindle his career failed until he died on June 25, 2009.

    Back home in Nigeria, there was Etim Esin, the former soccer star, one of the first to play in Europe. He got into many unsavoury things and faced many accusations, including rape. The man nicknamed “super brat” was in the news sometime ago- for stealing a phone at a party organised by soccer great Austin “Jay Jay” Okocha.

    Tiger’s story – of cheers and jeers, sighs and highs and lows- is not just about golf. No. It is the relationship between golf and life. Both demand patience (putting the ball in the hole requires deep thinking and a sense of proportion); endurance (walking 18 holes is no lazy man’s job); confidence (driving the ball several metres to land on the green is no frivolity); perseverance (every hole offers an opportunity to correct a mistake) and honesty (recording the right score even when nobody notices is the hallmark of a true golfer). And more.

    No wonder many golfers say “golf is life; life is golf”. Considering Tiger’s sensational return, aren’t they right?

     

    Death for kidnappers

    THREE policemen and four others are to die for kidnapping a woman in Akwa Ibom State. Justice Joy Uuwana handed down the sentence to the criminals on Tuesday in a trial that began in 2012. The gangsters yanked Deaconess Ime Anietie Ekanem off her husband’s vehicle and took her into captivity.
    They hired her neighbour for N50,000 to cater for the victim while negotiations for ransom went on. When detectives investigating the matter went to pay the ransom, they were shocked to discover that three of the evil men were their colleagues.
    The law prescribes death for abduction in Akwa Ibom. The convicts are to die by hanging. The age-old argument that death penalty does not deter criminals will remain with us; so also is the question of how to rein in the bad guys among us. It is shameful that policemen – some of them that is; there are many good officers in the police – who are hired to protect the people are part of the danger we all face.
    It is sad that heroic stories are no longer common among our law enforcement officers. Nowadays, if they are not part of a gang of kidnappers, they are busy shooting innocent Nigerians who they have no reason whatsoever to shoot.
    Acting Inspector General of Police Mohammed Adamu surely has his job cut out for him. The rot in the system is huge; the clean-up should begin now. Gangsters should never be allowed to take over the police.

  • Tiger Woods: The reward of resilience

    I don’t really fancy the game of golf. It looks somehow too elitist. For me, football, boxing, basketball, wrestling, athletics and rugby, among others, are more fascinating sports. But then, the personality, competitiveness and successes of American Tiger Woods endeared me to golf.

    For years, Woods was the face of golf. In 1997, he brought world focus to the sport when he won his first Masters by a record 12 shots. As a result of this feat, golf players became fitter, prize money increased while awareness of the game swelled considerably.  Without a doubt, Woods has been to golf what the likes of Pele, Maradona, Messi and Christiano Ronaldo are to football. In contemporary time, Woods has given golf a breadth of fresh air, something refreshingly exciting.

    Naturally, it wasn’t quite long before Woods began to swim in fame and wealth. Major sponsors began to queue behind themselves to have him endorse their products. Soon, the great golfer became superbly rich and famous. Meanwhile, as Woods was doing well for himself, the game of golf was equally making wave. People of all ages, across the globe, became more attracted to golf as a result of Wood’s larger than life public image.

    Soon, Woods transcended the game and became an iconic sporting figure, widely celebrated by sports fans across the world. He became the number one sporting personality in the world. He was loved, admired and adored by many. By now, he has remarkably transited from the 1997 rookie that won his first major to a superstar who called the shot in global sports. For years, he was world number one golfer, breaking records upon records. A star has not only been born, but a shining star is on the horizon soaring higher and higher.

    But then, suddenly and like an overblown balloon that suddenly dissolves in the air, Woods’ world came crashing without giving any sign, at least to the public. It all began in 2009. Early that year, at the US PGA, the legendary golfer had failed to seal the win for the first time in his major career, losing to South Korea’s YE Yang. Unknowingly, that was just the beginning of years of many troubles for Woods. As they say, when trouble comes it comes in droves.

    Later in 2009, news of a great brawl between Woods and his wife, over alleged extra marital affairs, broke out. There were reports of Woods storming out of their home in Florida, in obvious rage, and hitting his car on an object in a dramatic road crash that was to open the floodgate of more troubles for Woods. Found asleep at the wheel of his car at the side of a road in Palm Beach, Florida, pictures and dash cam video of a perplexed and bewildered Woods were flashed around the world. He pleaded guilty to reckless driving and was put on a diversion programme, but from that lowest point, Woods’ descent has just begun.

    Before long, women of all shapes, heights and colours began to come into the open to expose tales of diverse sexual escapades with the golf megastar. One thing led to the other, a bitter divorce suit between him and his estranged wife followed and eventually, Woods nearly lost all his earnings from the game he loved so much. Rapidly, things blossomed into a case of ‘One Week, One Trouble’ for the iconic sports star.  His world was crashing fast! Not even his legendary dexterity in the golf course could save him.

    Major sponsors started revoking their sponsorship deals with Woods on moral grounds. Suddenly, they felt the guy was no longer representing the interest of their respective outfits well. Chroniclers were already penning a narrative that captured the details of ‘The Rise and Fall of the Great Tiger’. Yes, Woods, the iconic sporting personality, whom every young chap had wanted to be like, had abruptly fallen from grace to grass. In a twinkling of an eyelid, he had lost it all!

    Wounded and embittered, Woods tried hard to get his way back to becoming the great golfer he used to be, but it was never to be. In 2013, his problem became compounded as a fearful back injury that nearly truncated his golfing career resurfaced. Many wrote off his career as the injuries took their toll on his form. His world ranking plunged so significantly that he dropped from formerly being world number one to being outside the top 1,000! At last, a star has dimmed. So, we all thought.

    But then, as it is often said, it is not over until it is over. Yes, that was the astonishing account of Woods’ recent comeback that has continued to resonate across the world. A few days back, the tiger roared back in style to global reckoning: Woods clinched his fifth Masters and 15th major title to seal one of the greatest comeback stories in global sporting history. The 43-year-old braved his way through a closely filled leader board to win by one shot at Augusta for his first major title in 11 years and first Masters win since 2005. Earlier, in 2017, Woods had undergone career-saving spine fusion surgery and sealed an impressive comeback season in 2018 with his first win for five years.

    His latest breath-taking triumph puts the former world No.1 just three majors behind the all-time record of Jack Nicklaus. Only fellow American Nicklaus has won more Masters, with six. Woods also joins Nicklaus as the only player to have won the Masters in three different decades after he clinched his first as a 21-year-old in 1997.

    And suddenly, the world remembers Woods again. Characteristically, maverick American president, Donald Trump, took to twitter to ‘celebrate a great sportsman’. Also, Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama, dubbed his comeback a ‘dramatic one’. NBA star Steph Curry called it “the greatest comeback story in sports,” while tennis legend Serena Williams said she “was in tears” and said it was “greatness like no other.” Till date, showers of praises have continued to pour in for this Tiger, who has just gotten out of the wood.

    The main lesson in the Woods trajectory is that nothing is too strong to stop a determined and focused person. But for his rugged determination to keep forging ahead and not to take to pity party, Woods would have become history by now. One only hopes that upcoming sports folks and, indeed, all folks across the world would learn from his exceptional experience to always turn adversity to advantage.

     

    • Ogunbiyi is of the Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.

  • Ten interesting facts you didn’t know about Tiger Woods

    Adeyinka Akintunde

     

     

    After 11 years of personal and professional setbacks, one of which was a highly-publicised divorce and multiple surgeries, American golfer Tiger Woods on Sunday made a one of the greatest comebacks in sports history, winning the 2019 Golf Masters for the fifth time.

    This victory impressed President Donald Trump of the United States of America, who is set to honour him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States.

    Trump, who took to his twitter handle said: “Spoke to @TigerWoods to congratulate him on the great victory he had in yesterday’s @TheMasters, & to inform him that because of his incredible Success & Comeback in Sports (Golf) and, more importantly, life, I will be presenting him with the presidential medal of freedom,”

    It is on record that President Donald Trump, a golfer himself, once played with Woods including in February when the pair joined golf great Jack Nicklaus for a round at Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida.

    Read Also: Tiger Woods’ net worth rises to $800m

    Here is a look at ten things you might not know about Tiger Woods.

    1. His real name is Eldrick Tont Woods – Eldrick because it has his father’s initial at the start and his mother’s first initial at the end, and Tont is a traditional Thai name
    2. His father was in the army and named his son Tiger because his fellow solider and friend Col. Vuong Dang Phong was also known as Tiger
    3. He is a Buddhist…. Raised in the religion, he claims that his infidelities and fall from grace can be attributed to his deviation from his Buddhist awareness and practices.
    4. At 24, he became the youngest golfer to win the career grand slam.
    5. He was a stutter as a child and overcame it by taking classes at school and talking to his dog at nights.
    6. He became the first billion dollar sportsman. His net worth in 2018 is currently estimated to be $740m.
    7. He had a glittering amateur career, winning the US Amateur Championship three years in a row from 1994-1996. He is the only man to do that.
    8. His father Earl instilled golf in him from a very young age and Tiger would watch his father hit balls in the garage from his high chair from the age of 6 months.
    9. He first began playing at the Navy Golf Course which his dad had access to. He shot 48 for nine holes aged 3.
    10. He attended Stanford University to study economics for two years. He was nicknamed “Ukrel” by his friends. He did not graduate but instead left early to turn professional.