Tiger Woods celebrates his 50th birthday. We look back on a professional career that remains nearly unmatched.
Eldrick Tont Woods was born on December 30, 1975, in Cypress, California, to Kultida Woods, originally from Thailand, and Earl Woods, a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army. Given the nickname \”Tiger\” by his father in honor of a Vietnam War comrade, he grew up with two half-brothers and a half-sister on the American West Coast near Los Angeles. At six months old, young Tiger supposedly mimicked his father’s golf swings, and just before his second birthday, he was featured as a golf prodigy on The Mike Douglas Show, where he demonstrated swings and putts on TV alongside comedian Bob Hope and his father.
Path to College Stardom and Amateur Champion
Tiger Woods first gained notable success at age eight by winning the Junior World Golf Championship in 1984. He continued winning junior amateur titles until 1994, when he won the NCAA title for Stanford University, where he studied economics, gaining nationwide recognition in the USA.
Woods began his professional career in August 1996 and simultaneously signed some of the most lucrative endorsement deals in golf history, including a $40 million contract with Nike. In his debut season, he won two tournaments and qualified for the Tour Championship. After his first season, Sports Illustrated named him \”Sportsman of the Year,\” and the PGA Tour honored him as Rookie of the Year.
His first Major victory came in 1997 at the Masters, where he triumphed with 18 under par and a 12-stroke lead at Augusta National. Woods became the first Masters winner of color in the predominantly white professional golf scene. In June 1997, just 42 weeks into his pro career, he attained the number one spot in the world rankings for the first time.
