Facts about Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods was born Eldrick Tont Woods on December 30, 1975. The pet name 'Tiger' was borrowed from a Vietnamese soldier and friend of his father. Little did his parents realize that the name would fit like a glove, as their little Tiger would one day rule the greens.

Tiger's parents are the late Earl Woods and Kultida (Tida) Woods. His father Earl, who retired as a lieutenant colonel from the United States Army, was also a Vietnam War veteran. He met Kultida, a native of Thailand, in Bangkok, and the two married in 1969. Tiger is their only child, but he does have two half-brothers and one half-sister from his father's previous marriage. He grew up in Orange County, California and graduated from Western High School in Anaheim in 1994. He is said to have been a diligent student, achieving high grades in school.

His penchant for golf received nurturing at a very early age. His father, Earl Woods, is quoted saying, "When Tiger was 6 months old, he would sit in our garage, watching me hit balls into a net. He had been assimilating his golf swing. When he got out of the high chair, he had a golf swing." Three months later, he took his first swing with a golf club. At age three, he shot a 48 over nine holes at the Navy Golf Club in Cypress, California, and at age five, he appeared on the television show, That's Incredible. In 1984, at the age of eight he won the 9 - 10 boys' event, the youngest age group available, at the Junior World Golf Championships. He won the Optimist International Junior tournament six times at ages 8, 9, 12, 13, 14 and 15.

Golf Achievements

Tiger wood has an illustrious track record. He turned professional in 1996 and though he was already well known in golf circles, he received global recognition when he won the U.S. Masters in 1997. Not only did he set a record score of 270, he became the youngest man to win it at the age of 21. Over the course of the following few years, he won four US PGA titles, three U.S. Open wins, three Open Championship wins, and three U.S. Masters wins. Consistent in his wins, he took home five trophies in 2003, including the Buick Invitational and the Western Open. While many were ready to write him off when he experienced a slump in 2004, his spectacular comeback with six championship wins in 2005 silenced them. Since then, he has maintained his position as golf's golden boy, overcoming injuries, stress fractures and knee surgery. His latest victory was the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March 2009.

Marriage

Tiger met his future wife Elin Nordegren, a Swedish model in 2001. The Swedish golfer Jesper Parnevki, who had hired her as a nanny, introduced them during the Open Championship. They were seen in public for the first time in South Africa 2003, the time when they got engaged. The following year, on October 5, 2004 the couple exchanged their vows. The lavish wedding took place at the Sandy Lane resort on the Caribbean island of Barbados. On June 18, 2007 they welcomed their first child, daughter Sam Alexis Woods into the world. They were blessed for a second time with baby boy Charlie Axel, on February 8, 2009.

Tiger and his Parents

Tiger has said that along with Nelson Mandela, his parents are his biggest source of inspiration. As a kid, his ambition was to beat his father in a game of golf. The world was witness to the close bond that existed between tiger and his dad Earl. His father was present with him almost constantly on the greens, at times even caddying for him. Tiger suffered a huge loss when in 2006 his father succumbed to prostate cancer. "He was the person I looked up to more than anyone," said Tiger following his father's demise. Most golf fans will remember how tiger broke down in his father's arms on wining the Masters in 1997. This moment touched our hearts as did watching Tiger shed tears in 2005 (Masters tournament victory), because his dad was too ill to come to the course.

Interesting Facts about Tiger Woods

• He is a Buddhist
• He appeared on The Mike Douglas Show on TV in 1978. An immensely popular video among all his fans, it captures an incredibly cute two year old tiger putting against comedian Bob Hope.
• He attended Stanford University for two years.
• Tiger had nine cheeseburgers served when he hosted his first Masters dinner.
• His favorite movie is "Caddyshack.'' He also loves "48 Hours'' and all James Bonds movies, especially the older one's starring Sean Connery as 007.
• Tiger's favorite Musicians include: U2, Boyz II Men and Janet Jackson.
• His perfect day is to surf, ski, play golf, and go spear-fishing in the same day!
• Tiger has four red Nike Golf polo shirts in his closet and he has won 37 tournaments wearing only one of them.
• Tiger and his dad used to do a trick at the golf clinics they put on for kids. His father Earl would stand in front of him and keep coming closer as Tiger hit golf balls over his dads head. Finally Earl would end up just a few feet away, at which point Tiger would hit a shot that went almost straight up and landed on his father's head!