Tiger Woods Week at Minority Golf Magazine

Feature Articles

A prodigy turned professional, October 1996

By Herschel V Caldwell

Only a handful of men or women who’ve had such a huge impact on their sport and Tiger Woods will be counted in the history of golf as one of the greatest players of all time. Some will argue that he will be counted as the greatest but that chapter has yet to be written and right now that special seat is rightfully held by Jack Nicklaus.

However, on the eve of Tiger’s return to active tournament play after fighting personal upheavals and myriad health issues, the editors of Minority Golf Magazine thought it would be entertaining to reflect on Tiger’s storied life on the PGA Tour….from the beginning.

At his worst, Eldrick “Tiger” Woods will always be number one.  He is the number one amateur, the number one rookie and the number one draw on the PGA Tour.  All Tiger had to do to get this coveted title was go from college to Nike in one day.  And on that day he became a millionaire.
With the entire sporting world watching his every move, not to mention the advertisers, Tiger seems ready to exchange books for bunkers and reap the rewards of playing his game, full-time.  They say Tiger has the opportunity to do for golf what Jordan did for basketball and Robinson did for baseball: encourage minority children to aspire to the lofty goals of stardom as a sports legend.  However, in golf, your winnings are earned, not simply expected.  It’s difficult for golfers to compete against the likes of basketball, football and baseball players when millions of dollars change hands for just a signature.  Golf, like all professional sports, is  mental.  It takes discipline and patience, but the payoff for 18-rounds, great exercise, and no physical contact is the reward of a job well done and a scorecard to prove it.  For Tiger, his toughest role may not be on the fairway as much as showing children how fun and rewarding golf can be.  And that may not be so easy.

The Early Years of Tiger Woods

His career began by beating 10-year olds when he was three.  He went on at age 11 undefeated in 30 Southern California youth events, and at 16 he became the youngest player ever to compete in a PGA tournament.  He won three United States Golf Association junior titles, the first when he was 15 and coupled with his third U.S. amateur title at age 20, Tiger is ready to roar.
His father, Earl, made Tiger what he is today.  From the age of 10 months, there was a club in his hand and a dream that this child would hold in his swing, the future of golf.  The elder Woods and his wife sacrificed everything for their child, ensuring he would play with the best equipment and in the most prestigious tournaments.  “This is the first Black intuitive golfer ever raised in the U.S.,” said Earl Woods in an interview with Sports Illustrated last year. “Before, black kids grew up with basketball or football or baseball from the time they could walk.  The game became part of them from the beginning.  Tiger knew how to swing a club before he could walk.”  And their sacrifice paid off.  It was apparent they had a prodigy.
Aside from winning an unprecedented three straight U.S. amateur titles – a first ever by anyone – Woods is subject to much controversy over the color of his skin.  A darker complexion that places him on the lonely list of minorities to ever play in the Professional Golfer’s Association.

Tiger Woods-photo by MGM

However, Tiger will be far from lonely on his journey through the Tour.  With such sponsors as Nike and Titleist, a reported $43 million during the next five years, and endorsements for everything from fast food to insurance, he is not likely to wish for the calmer days at Stanford and wonder where the money will come from to buy books.  At the press conference after announcing his pro status, Tiger began his speech by saying “Well, I guess it’s ‘Hello World.'”  A comment  found two days later in a Nike ad campaign.
It is a much different road for Tiger today than for his famous predecessors.  Such minority golf legends as Charlie Owens, Calvin Peete, Charlie Sifford, Ted Rhodes, Jim Thorpe, Lee Elder and Jim Dent began their careers caddying for the white players on segregated courses.

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