Tiger Woods
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{| class="infobox" style="width:290px; font-size:90%;"
! colspan="2" style="font-size:larger;" | Tiger Woods
|-
| align=center colspan="2" |
{| style="background:#f9f9f9;" border="0" cellspacing="0"
|- align=center
[[Image:Tiger Woods 2007.jpg|200px|center]]
|}
|-
! colspan="2" bgcolor="#4682B4" | '''Personal Information'''
|-
| '''Birth''' || {{birth date and age|1975|12|30}} <br>[[Cypress, California]]
|-
| '''Height''' || {{Height|ft=6|in=1|wiki=yes}}
|-
| '''Weight''' || {{convert|185|lb|kg st}}
|-
| '''Nationality''' || {{USA}}
|-
| '''Wife''' || [[Elin Nordegren]] (2004-Present)
|-
| '''Children''' || Sam Alexis (age - {{age for infant|2007|6|18}})
|-
| '''Residence''' || [[Windermere, Florida]]
|-
| '''College''' || [[Stanford University]] (two years)
|-
! colspan="2" bgcolor="E2725B" | Career
|-
| '''Turned Pro''' || 1996
|-
| '''Current tour''' || [[PGA Tour]] (joined 1996)
|-
! colspan="2" bgcolor="ccccff" | Professional wins (89)
|-
| '''PGA Tour''' || [[List of career achievements by Tiger Woods#PGA Tour wins (65)|65]] ([[Golfers with most PGA Tour wins|3rd all time]])
|-
| '''Other''' || [[List of career achievements by Tiger Woods#Other professional wins (24)|24]]
|-
! colspan="2" bgcolor="#ACE1AF" | Major Championship Wins (14)
|-
| [[The Masters|Masters]]
| '''(4)''' [[1997 Masters Tournament|1997]], [[2001 Masters Tournament|2001]], [[2002 Masters Tournament|2002]], [[2005 Masters Tournament|2005]]
|-
| [[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]]
| '''(3)''' [[2000 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2000]], [[2002 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2002]], [[2008 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2008]]
|-
| [[The Open Championship|The Open]]
| '''(3)''' [[2000 Open Championship|2000]], [[2005 Open Championship|2005]], [[2006 Open Championship|2006]]
|-
| [[PGA Championship|PGA]]
| '''(4)''' [[1999 PGA Championship|1999]], [[2000 PGA Championship|2000]], [[2006 PGA Championship|2006]], [[2007 PGA Championship|2007]]
|-
! colspan="2" bgcolor="#D8BFD8" | Awards listed [[List of career achievements by Tiger Woods#Awards|here]]
|}
'''Tiger Woods''' (born '''Eldrick Tiger Woods''',<ref>{{cite web|first=Dave |last=Anderson|title=Sometimes A Nickname Has a Price |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9907EEDE1238F930A35756C0A9679C8B63&scp=1&sq=Eldrick+T.+%22Tiger%22+Woods&st=nyt |work=[[The New York Times]] |publisher=[[The New York Times Company]]|date=2001-05-03 |accessdate=2008-06-15}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | author=Tiger Woods | title=Tiger Woods: Biography | url=http://www.tigerwoods.com/defaultflash.sps?page=bio | work=Official Website for Tiger Woods | publisher=ETW Corp.
Woods | date=2008 | accessdate=2008-03-01}}</ref><ref> {{cite book|title=The Wicked Game: Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and the Story of Modern Golf|author=Sounes, Howard|publisher=[[Harper Collins]]|year=2004|isbn=0-06-051386-1|pages=120-121,293}} </ref>) [[December 30]], [[1975]] is an [[United States|American]] [[professional golfer]] whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Currently the [[Chronological list of World Number One male golfers|World No. 1]], he was the highest-paid professional athlete in 2007, having earned an estimated $122 million from winnings and endorsements. According to ''Golf Digest'', Woods made $769,440,709 from 1996 to 2007,<ref>{{cite web |title = The Fortunate 50 |author = Jonah Freedman |url = http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/more/specials/fortunate50/2007/ |publisher = [[Sports Illustrated]]| date=2007 |accessdate = 2008-05-20}}</ref> and the magazine predicts that by 2010, Woods will become the world's first athlete to pass one billion dollars in earnings.<ref>{{cite news | title=The Golf Digest 50 | publisher=[[Golf Digest]] | url=http://www.golfdigest.com/magazine/2008/02/gd50 | accessdate=2007-01-11 | date=February 2008 | first=Ron | last=Sirak }}</ref>
Woods has won fourteen professional [[Men's major golf championships|major golf championships]], the second highest of any male player, and 65 [[PGA Tour]] events, third all time. He has more [[Golfers with most wins in men's major championships|career major wins]] and [[Golfers with most PGA Tour wins|career PGA Tour wins]] than any other active golfer. He is the youngest player to achieve the career [[Grand Slam (golf)|Grand Slam]], and the youngest and fastest to win 50 tournaments on tour.
Woods has held the number one position in the [[Official World Golf Rankings|world rankings]] for the most consecutive weeks and for the greatest total number of weeks. He has been awarded [[PGA Tour#Player and rookie of the year awards|PGA Player of the Year]] a record nine times, the [[Vardon Trophy|Byron Nelson Award]] for lowest adjusted scoring average a record eight times, and has tied [[Jack Nicklaus]]' record of leading the [[PGA Tour#Money winners and most wins leaders|money list]] in eight different seasons. He has been named [[Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year]] a record-tying four times, and is the only person to be named [[Sports Illustrated]]'s [[Sportsman of the Year]] more than once.
Woods, who is [[multiracial]], is credited with prompting a major surge of interest in the game of golf. He dramatically increased attendance and TV ratings and generated interest among a multicultural audience in a game that used to be considered insular and [[elitist]].<ref name ="SI1996"> {{cite web| title = 1996: Tiger Woods| publisher = Sports Illustrated| author = Rick Reilly| date = 1996-12-23| url = http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/features/2000/sportsman/1996/| accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title = Tiger 1997: The buzz that rocked the cradle |author = Rick Reilly, John Garrity, and Jaime Diaz |date = 1997-04-01 |accessdate = 2007-08-26 |publisher = [[Sports Illustrated]] |url = http://www.golf.com/golf/tours_news/article/0,28136,1594277,00.html}}</ref>
After winning the [[2008 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2008 U.S. Open]], Woods is sitting out the rest of the [[2008 PGA Tour]], missing two [[Men's major golf championships|major championships]] and the [[2008 Ryder Cup]], in order to concentrate on the rehabilitation of his injured left knee.<ref>{{cite web |title = Woods out for rest of '08 |author = Cameron Morfit |date = 2008-06-18 |accessdate = 2008-06-18 |publisher = ''Golf'' Magazine|url = http://www.golf.com/golf/tours_news/article/0,28136,1815681,00.html}}</ref>
==Background and family==
Eldrick Tont Woods was born on [[December 30]], [[1975]] in [[Cypress, California|Cypress]], [[California]] to [[Earl Woods|Earl]] (1932-2006) and Kultida Woods. He is the only child of their marriage but has two half-brothers, Earl Jr. (born 1955) and Kevin (born 1957), and one half-sister, Royce (born 1958) from the 18-year marriage of Earl Woods and his first wife, Barbara Woods Gray. Earl, a retired [[United States Army]] [[Lieutenant Colonel (United States)|lieutenant colonel]] and [[Vietnam War]] veteran, was of mixed [[African American]] (50 percent), [[Chinese American|Chinese]] (25 percent) and [[Native Americans in the United States|Native American]] (25 percent) ancestry. Kultida ([[Married and maiden names|nee]] Punsawad), originally from [[Thailand]], is of mixed [[Thai people|Thai]] (50 percent), [[Han Chinese|Chinese]] (25 percent), and [[Dutch people|Dutch]] (25 percent) ancestry. This makes Woods himself one-quarter Chinese, one-quarter Thai, one-quarter African American, one-eighth Native American, and one-eighth Dutch.<ref name="Stripes">
{{cite web | title = Earning his stripes | publisher = [[AsianWeek]]| url = http://www.asianweek.com/101196/Tigerwoods.html
| date=1996-10-11| accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> He refers to his ethnic make-up as ''“Cablinasian”'' (a [[portmanteau]] term he coined from [[Caucasian race|'''Ca'''ucasian]], [[Black people|'''Bl'''ack]], [[Native Americans in the United States|(American) '''In'''dian]], and [[Asian people|'''Asian''']]).<ref name ="Cablinasian">{{cite web | author = Associated Press | title= Woods stars on Oprah, says he's 'Cablinasian'
| publisher = Lubbock Avalanche-Journal | date = 1997-04-23 | url=http://www.lubbockonline.com/news/042397/woods.htm
| accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref>
Woods is a [[Buddhism|Buddhist]]. He has said that his faith was acquired from his mother and that it helps control both his stubbornness and impatience.<ref name="Buddhism">{{cite web |title="Gandhi and Tiger Woods"|author = Robert Wright|date = 2000-7-24|Publisher = [[Slate]]|url=http://www.slate.com/id/86898/|accessdate=2007-08-13}}</ref>
At birth, Woods was given "Eldrick" and "Tont" as first and middle names, respectively. His middle name, Tont, is a traditional Thai name.<ref>{{harvnb|Sounes|2004|p= 121}}</ref> He got his nickname from a [[Vietnam]]ese soldier friend of his father, Vuong Dang Phong, to whom his father had also given the "Tiger" nickname. Woods became generally known by that name and by the time he had achieved national prominence in junior and amateur golf, he was simply known as "Tiger" Woods. <!-- On his twenty-first birthday, Woods legally changed his name from Eldrick to Tiger.<ref name="nm1">Todd, Brian., [http://edition.cnn.com/2005/US/04/11/tiger.masters/index.html "This one's for Pop"], ''[[CNN]].com'', [[2005-04-11]], Retrieved on [[2007-09-14]].</ref> According to a legal document at The Smoking Gun (see http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1103041tigerwoods1.html) he didn't change his name -->
Woods grew up in [[Orange County, California]] and graduated from [[Western High School (California)|Western High School]] in [[Anaheim, California|Anaheim]] in 1994.
===Marriage===
In November 2003, Woods became engaged to [[Elin Nordegren]], a [[Swedish people|Swedish]] model. They were introduced during The Open Championship in 2001 by Swedish golfer [[Jesper Parnevik]], who had employed her as an [[au pair]]. They married on [[October 5]], [[2004]] at the [[Sandy Lane (resort)| Sandy Lane]] resort on the [[Caribbean]] island of [[Barbados]] and live at Isleworth, a community in [[Windermere, Florida|Windermere]], a suburb of [[Orlando, Florida]]. They also have homes in [[Jackson, Wyoming]], California, and Sweden. In January 2006, they purchased a $39 million residential property in [[Jupiter Island, Florida]], which they intend to make their primary residence.<ref name = "Den">{{cite web |title = The $54m Tiger den - but not all neighbours welcome world's best|author = Harry Mount |date = 2006-01-08
|publisher = [[The Sydney Morning Herald]]|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/54m-tiger-den/2006/01/07/1136609984028.html
| accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> Their Jupiter Island neighbors will include fellow golfers [[Gary Player]], [[Greg Norman]] and [[Nick Price]], as well as singers [[Celine Dion]] and [[Alan Jackson]]. In 2007, a guest house on the Jupiter Island estate was destroyed in a fire caused by lightning.<ref>Associated Press (2007), [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=golfonline&id=2921515 "Beachside home owned by Tiger Woods destroyed in fire"], ''[[ESPN]].com'', [[2007-06-29]], Retrieved on [[2007-07-08]].</ref>
Early in the morning of [[June 18]], [[2007]], Elin gave birth to the couple's first child, a daughter, Sam Alexis Woods, in Orlando.<ref>Associated Press (2007), [http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2908637 "Elin Woods has daughter just after U.S. Open"], ''[[ESPN]].com'', [[2007-06-19]], Retrieved on [[2007-07-08]].</ref> The birth occurred just one day after Woods finished tied for second in the [[2007 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2007 U.S. Open]].<ref>Fleeman, Mike. [http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20042990,00.html "Tiger Woods and Wife Elin Nordegren Have a Baby Girl"], ''[[People (magazine)|People.com]]'', [[2007-06-19]], Retrieved on [[2007-07-08]].</ref> Tiger chose to name his daughter Sam because his father said that Tiger looked more like a Sam.<ref>Mandel, Susan., [http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20044551,00.html "Tiger Woods Calls Fatherhood 'A Dream Come True' "], ''[[People (magazine)|People.com]]'', [[2007-07-03]], Retrieved on [[2007-07-08]].</ref><ref>White, Joseph., Associated Press, [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/golf/2007-07-03-2162604389_x.htm "Woods played U.S. Open while wife was in hospital"], ''[[USAToday]].com'', [[2007-07-03]], Retrieved on [[2007-07-08]].</ref>
==Career==
===Early life and amateur career===
[[Image:Tiger woods on Mike Douglas show.jpg|thumb|Woods (age 2) on ''[[The Mike Douglas Show]]''. From left, Tiger Woods, [[Mike Douglas]], [[Earl Woods]] and [[Bob Hope]].]]
Woods was a [[child prodigy]] who began to play golf at the age of two. In 1978, he putted against comedian [[Bob Hope]] in a television appearance on ''[[The Mike Douglas Show]]''. At age three, he shot a 48 over nine holes at the Navy Golf Club in Cypress, California, and at age five, he appeared in ''[[Golf Digest]]'' and on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''[[That's Incredible]]''.<ref name="Timeline"> {{cite web | title = Tiger Woods Timeline | publisher = Infoplease | url = http://www.infoplease.com/spot/tigertime1.html | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> 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]].<ref name ="JWGC84">
{{cite web | title = 1984 Champions | publisher = Junior World Golf Championships | url = http://www.juniorworldgolf.com/pchamps.php?pg=1984 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> He went on to win the Junior World Championships six times, including four consecutive wins from 1988 to 1991.<ref name ="JWGC85">{{cite web | title = 1985 Champions | publisher = Junior World Golf Championships | url = http://www.juniorworldgolf.com/pchamps.php?pg=1985 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="JWGC88">{{cite web | title = 1988 Champions | publisher = Junior World Golf Championships | url = http://www.juniorworldgolf.com/pchamps.php?pg=1988 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="JWGC89">{{cite web | title = 1989 Champions | publisher = Junior World Golf Championships | url = http://www.juniorworldgolf.com/pchamps.php?pg=1989.| accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="JWGC90">{{cite web | title = 1990 Champions | publisher = Junior World Golf Championships | url = http://www.juniorworldgolf.com/pchamps.php?pg=1990
| accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="JWGC91">{{cite web | title = 1991 Champions | publisher = Junior World Golf Championships | url = http://www.juniorworldgolf.com/pchamps.php?pg=1991 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
While attending Western High School in Anaheim at the age of 15, Woods became the youngest ever [[U.S. Junior Amateur]] Champion, was voted Southern California Amateur Player of the Year for the second consecutive year, and Golf Digest Junior Amateur Player of the Year 1991.<ref name ="USJA91">{{cite web | title = 1991 US Junior Amateur | publisher = US Junior Amateur | url = http://www.usjunioram.org/2002/history/champions/1991.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> He successfully defended his title at the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, becoming the first multiple winner, competed in his first PGA Tour event, the [[Nissan Los Angeles Open]] and was named Golf Digest Amateur Player of the Year, Golf World Player of the Year and Golfweek National Amateur of the Year in 1992.<ref name ="USJA92">{{cite web | title = 1992 US Junior Amateur | publisher = US Junior Amateur | url = http://www.usjunioram.org/2002/history/champions/1992.html | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref><ref name ="IMG">{{cite web | title = Tiger Woods | publisher = IMG Speakers | url = http://www.imgspeakers.com/speakers/tiger_woods.aspx | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
The following year, Woods won his third consecutive U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, and remains the event's youngest-ever and only multiple winner.<ref name ="USJA93">{{cite web | title = 1993 US Junior Amateur | publisher = US Junior Amateur | url = ttp://www.usjunioram.org/2002/history/champions/1993.html | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> In 1994, he became the youngest ever winner of the [[U.S. Amateur Championship]]. He was a member of the American team at the 1994 [[Eisenhower Trophy]] [[World Amateur Golf Team Championships]] and 1995 [[Walker Cup]].<ref name ="IGF">
{{cite web | title = Notable Past Players | publisher = International Golf Federation | url = http://www.internationalgolffederation.org/History/notables.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="Walker">
{{cite web | title = Ailing Woods Unsure for Walker Cup | publisher = International Herald Tribune | author = Ian Thomsen
| date = 1995-09-09 | url = http://www.iht.com/articles/1995/09/09/golf.t_0.php | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> Later that year, he enrolled at [[Stanford University]], and won his first collegiate event, the William Tucker Invitational. He declared a major in Economics and was nicknamed "[[Steve Urkel|Urkel]]" by his college teammates.<ref name ="Stanford">{{cite web | title = Will Tiger Woods win his third-straight major? | publisher = Daily Iowan | author = Jerod Leupold
| date = 2003-04-08 | url = http://media.www.dailyiowan.com/media/storage/paper599/news/2003/04/08/Sports/Will-Tiger.Woods.Win.His.ThirdStraight.Major-411391.shtml
| accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> In 1995, he defended his U.S. Amateur title, and was voted Pac-10 Player of the Year, NCAA First Team All-American, and Stanford's Male Freshman of the Year (an award that encompasses all sports).<ref name ="PAC10">
{{cite web | title = PAC-10 Men's Golf | publisher = PAC-10 Conference | url = http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/pac10/sports/c-golf/auto_pdf/m-golf-records.pdf | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="Ages">{{cite web
| title = Tiger Woods through the Ages... | publisher = Geocities | url = http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/2396/tigerwatch.html
| accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> He participated in his first PGA Tour major, the [[Masters Tournament]], and tied for 41st as the only amateur to make the cut. At age 20 in 1996, he became the first golfer to win three consecutive U.S. Amateur titles and won the [[NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships|NCAA individual golf championship]].<ref name ="NCAA">{{cite web | title = Tiger Woods Captures 1996 NCAA Individual Title | publisher = Stanford University | url = http://gostanford.cstv.com/sports/m-golf/archive/stan-m-golf-96woodsncaa.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> In winning the Silver Medal as leading amateur at [[The Open Championship]], he tied the record for an amateur aggregate score of 281.<ref name ="Open1996"> {{cite web | title = Tiger Woods Ties Record And Turns Many Heads | publisher = [[International Herald Tribune]] | author = Don Greenberg | date = 1996-07-07 | url = http://www.iht.com/articles/1996/07/22/green.t_1.php
| accessdate = 2007-05-15}}</ref> He left college after two years and turned professional.
===Professional career===
[[Image:Tiger Woods 2004.jpg|thumb|upright|Tiger Woods giving a driving demonstration aboard the [[USS George Washington (CVN-73)|USS ''George Washington'']].]]
====1996-98: Early years and first major win====
With the announcement, "Hello World," Tiger Woods became a professional golfer in August 1996, and signed endorsement deals worth $40 million from [[Nike, Inc.]] and $20 million from [[Titleist]].<ref name ="10Years1"> {{cite web | title = 10 Years of Tiger Woods Part 1
| publisher = Golf Digest | author = Ron Sirak | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/features/tigerwoods/index | accessdate = 2007-05-21}}</ref><ref name ="Hello">{{cite web | title = Golf's first Billion-Dollar Man
| publisher = Golf Digest | author = Ron Sirak | url = http://web.archive.org/web/20070513225510/http://www.golfdigest.com/features/index.ssf?/features/gd200602top50.html
| accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> He played his first round of professional golf at the [[U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee|Greater Milwaukee Open]], tying for 60th place, but went on to win two events in the next three months to qualify for the [[Tour Championship]]. For his efforts, Woods was named ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'''s 1996 [[Sportsman of the Year]] and [[PGA Rookie of the Year]].<ref name ="SI1996"/> He began his tradition of wearing a red shirt during the final round of tournaments, a link to his college days at Stanford and a color he believes symbolizes aggression and assertiveness.<ref name ="Doral05">{{cite web| title = A Rivalry is Reborn
| publisher = Golf World| author = Bob Verdi| url = http://web.archive.org/web/20070514223355/http://www.golfdigest.com/newsandtour/index.ssf?/newsandtour/gw20050311doral.html
| accessdate = 2007-05-21}}</ref><ref name ="Red">{{cite web | title = Mental Rule: Wear the Red Shirt | publisher = GolfTodayMagazine | author = Gregg Steinberg | url = http://www.golftodaymagazine.com/0302Feb/mental.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-21}}</ref>
The following April, Woods won his first major, [[Masters Tournament|The Masters]], by a record margin of 12 strokes, becoming the youngest Masters winner and the first winner of [[African-American]] or [[Asian-American]] descent.<ref name ="10Years2"> {{cite web | title = 10 Years of Tiger Woods Part 2 | publisher = Golf Digest | author = Ron Sirak | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/features/tigerwoods/index?part=2 | accessdate = 2007-05-21}}</ref> He set a total of 20 Masters records and tied 6 others. He won another three PGA Tour events that year, and on [[June 15]] [[1997]], in only his 42nd week as a professional, rose to number one in the [[Official World Golf Rankings]], the fastest-ever ascent to world No. 1.<ref name ="No.1">{{cite web | title = Woods scoops world rankings award | publisher = [[BBC Sport]] | date 2006-03-15 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/golf/4811212.stm
| accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> He was named PGA Player of the Year, the first golfer to win the award the year following his rookie season.
While expectations for Woods were high, his form faded in the second half of 1997, and in 1998 he only won one PGA Tour event. He answered critics of his "slump" and what seemed to be wavering form by maintaining he was undergoing extensive swing changes with his coach, [[Butch Harmon]], and was hoping to do better in the future.<ref name ="Truth">
{{cite web | title = The Truth about Tiger | publisher = Golf Digest | author = Jaime Diaz | url = http://web.archive.org/web/20070415073152/http://www.golfdigest.com/features/index.ssf?/features/gd200501tigerdiaz1.html | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref>
====1999-2002: Domination and the Tiger Slam====
[[Image:Tiger Woods US.jpg|thumb]]
In June 1999, Woods won the [[Memorial Tournament]], a victory that marked the beginning of one of the greatest sustained periods of dominance in the history of men's golf. He completed his 1999 campaign by winning his last four starts, including the PGA Championship, and finished the season with eight wins — a feat not achieved in the past 25 years. He was voted [[PGA Tour#Player and rookie of the year awards|PGA Tour Player of the Year]] and [[Associated Press Athlete of the Year#Male|Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year]] for the second time in three years.
Woods started 2000 with his fifth consecutive victory and began a record-setting season, where he would win three consecutive majors, nine PGA Tour events, and set or tie 27 Tour records. He went on to capture his sixth consecutive victory at the [[AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am]] with a comeback for the ages. Trailing by seven strokes with seven holes to play, he finished eagle-birdie-par-birdie for a 64 and a two-stroke victory. His six consecutive wins were the most since Hogan in 1948 and only five behind Byron Nelson’s record of eleven in a row. In the 2000 [[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]], he broke or tied a total of nine U.S. Open records with his 15-shot win, including [[Tom Morris, Sr.|Old Tom Morris's]] record for the largest victory margin ever in a major championship, which had stood since 1862, and became the Tour's all-time career money leader. He led by a record 10 strokes going into the final round, and ''Sports Illustrated'' called it "the greatest performance in golf history."<ref>{{cite web |title = Open and Shut |author = John Garrity |url = http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/golf/specials/tiger/2005/06/09/tiger.2000usopen/index.html |publisher = Sports Illustrated |date = 2000-06-26 |accessdate = 2007-08-15}}</ref> In the [[2000 Open Championship]] at [[Old Course at St Andrews|St Andrews]], which he won by eight strokes, he set the record for lowest score to par (−19) in any major tournament, and he holds at least a share of that record in all four major championships. At 24, he became the youngest golfer to achieve the Career Grand Slam.<ref name ="10Years3">{{cite web | title = 10 Years of Tiger Woods Part 3 | publisher = Golf Digest | author = Ron Sirak| url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/features/tigerwoods/index?part=3 | accessdate = 2007-05-21}}</ref>
Woods's major championship streak was seriously threatened at the [[2000 PGA Championship]], however, when [[Bob May (golfer)|Bob May]] went head-to-head with Woods on Sunday at [[Valhalla Golf Club]]. Woods played the last twelve holes of regulation seven under par, and won a three-hole playoff with a birdie on the first hole and pars on the next two. He joined [[Ben Hogan]] (1953) as the only other player to win three professional majors in one season. Three weeks later, he won his third straight start on Tour at the [[Bell Canadian Open]], becoming only the second man after [[Lee Trevino]] in 1971 to win the [[Triple Crown of Golf]] (U.S., British, and Canadian Opens) in one year. Of the twenty events he entered in 2000, he finished in the top three fourteen times. His adjusted scoring average of 67.79 and his actual scoring average of 68.17 were the lowest in PGA Tour history, besting his own record of 68.43 in 1999 and Byron Nelson's average of 68.33 in 1945, respectively. He was named the 2000 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, becoming the first (and only) athlete to be honored twice.<ref name ="SI2000">{{cite web
| title = Tunnel Vision | publisher = Sports Illustrated | author = S.L.Price
| date = 2000-04-03 | url = http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/features/2000/sportsman/flashbacks/woods/tunnel_vision/
| accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> Woods was ranked as the twelfth best golfer of all time by ''[[Golf Digest]]'' magazine just four years after he turned professional.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HFI/is_7_51/ai_63015233 |title=50 Greatest Golfers of All Time: And What They Taught Us |accessdate=2007-12-05 |last=Yocom |first=Guy |year=2000 |month=July |work=[[Golf Digest]] }}</ref>
The following season, Woods continued dominating. His [[2001 Masters Tournament]] win marked the only time within the era of the modern Grand Slam that any player has been the holder of all four major championship titles at the same time, a feat now known as the "Tiger Slam." It is not viewed as a true Grand Slam, however, because it was not achieved in a calendar year. Surprisingly, he was not a factor in the three remaining majors of the year, but finished with the most PGA Tour wins in the season, with five. In 2002, he started off strong, joining [[Nick Faldo]] (1989-90) and Jack Nicklaus (1965-66) as the only men to have won back-to-back Masters Tournaments.
Two months later, Woods was the only player under par at the U.S. Open, and resurrected buzz about the calendar Grand Slam, which had eluded him in 2000. All eyes were on Woods at the Open Championship, but his third round score of 81 ended Grand Slam hopes. At the PGA Championship, he nearly repeated his 2000 feat of winning three majors in one year, but bogeys at the thirteenth and fourteenth holes in the final round cost him the championship by one stroke. Nonetheless, he took home the money title, [[Vardon Trophy]], and Player of the Year honors for the fourth year in a row.
====2003-04: Swing adjustments====
[[Image:20080609 Tiger Woods.jpg|170px|thumb|Woods putting at [[Torrey Pines]] during a practice round at the [[108th U.S. Open]]]]
The next phase of Woods's career saw him remain among the top competitors on the tour, but lose his dominating edge. He did not win a [[Men's major golf championships|major]] in 2003 or 2004, falling to second in the [[PGA Tour]] money list in 2003 and fourth in 2004. In September 2004, his record streak of 264 consecutive weeks as the world's top-ranked golfer came to an end at the [[Deutsche Bank Championship]], when [[Vijay Singh]] won and overtook Woods in the Official World Golf Rankings.
Many commentators were puzzled by Woods's "slump," offering explanations that ranged from his rift with swing coach Butch Harmon to his marriage. At the same time, he let it be known that he was again working on changes to his swing, this time in hopes of reducing the wear and tear on his surgically-repaired left knee, which was subjected to severe stress in the 1998-2003 version of his swing.<ref name ="Truth"/><ref name ="Swing">{{cite web | title = Woods is starting to own his swing | publisher = PGA Tour | author = Dave Shedloski | date 2006-07-27
| url = http://www.pgatour.com/story/9574086/ | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref> Again, he anticipated that once the adjustments were complete, he would return to his previous form.
====2005-07: Resurgence====
In the 2005 season, Woods quickly returned to his winning ways. He won the [[Buick Invitational]] in January and in March he outplayed [[Phil Mickelson]] to win the [[Ford Championship at Doral]] and temporarily return to the Official World Golf Rankings number one position (Singh displaced him once again two weeks later).<ref name ="Doral05"/> In April, he finally broke his "drought" in the majors by winning the [[2005 Masters Tournament]] in a playoff, which regained him the number one spot in the World Rankings. Singh and Woods swapped the number 1 position several times over the next couple of months, but by early July, Woods had established an advantage, propelled further by a victory at the [[2005 Open Championship]], a win that gave him his 10th major. He went on to win six official money events on the PGA Tour in 2005, topping the money list for the sixth time in his career. His 2005 wins also included two at the [[World Golf Championships]].
[[Image:Woods on the Green.jpg|thumb|left| Woods on the green at The Masters in 2006.]]
For Woods, the year 2006 was markedly different from 2005. While he began just as dominantly (winning the first two tournaments he entered on the year) and was in the hunt for his fifth Masters championship in April, he never mounted a Sunday charge to defend his title, allowing [[Phil Mickelson]] to claim the green jacket.
On [[May 3]], [[2006]], Woods's father/mentor/inspiration, Earl, died after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. Woods took a nine-week hiatus from the PGA Tour to be with his family. When he returned for the 2006 U.S. Open, the rust was evident — he missed the cut at [[Winged Foot]], the first time he had missed the cut at a major as a professional, and ended his record-tying streak of 39 consecutive cuts made at majors. A tie for second at the [[Western Open]] just three weeks later showed him poised to defend his Open crown at [[Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake|Hoylake]].
At the [[2006 Open Championship]], Woods staged a tour de force in course management, putting, and accuracy with irons. Using almost exclusively long irons off the tee (he hit driver only one time the entire week — the 16th hole of the first round), he missed just four fairways all week (hitting the fairway 92 percent of the time), and his score of −18 to par (three eagles, nineteen birdies, 43 pars, and seven bogeys) was just one off of his major championship record −19, set at St Andrews in 2000. The victory was an emotional one for Woods, who dedicated his play to his father's memory.
Four weeks later, at the [[2006 PGA Championship]], Woods again won in dominating fashion — making only three bogeys, tying the record for fewest in a major. He finished the tournament at 18-under-par, equaling the to-par record in the PGA that he shares with Bob May. In August 2006, he won his 50th professional tournament at the [[Buick Open]], and at the age of thirty years and seven months, became the youngest golfer to do so. He ended the year by winning six consecutive PGA Tour events, and won the three most prestigious awards given by the PGA Tour (Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, and Byron Nelson Awards) in the same year for a record seventh time.
At the close of his first eleven seasons, Woods's 54 wins and 12 major wins had surpassed the all time eleven-season PGA Tour total win record of 51 (set by Byron Nelson) and total majors record of 11 (set by Jack Nicklaus). He was named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for a record-tying fourth time.<ref name ="Assoc06"> {{cite web | title = Man of the Year | publisher = PGA | author = Associated Press | url = http://www.pga.com/news/tours/pga-tour/woods122506.cfm | accessdate = 2007-05-21}}</ref>
Woods and tennis star [[Roger Federer]], who share a major sponsor, first met at the 2006 [[U.S. Open (tennis)|U.S. Open tennis]] final. Since then, they have attended each other's events and have voiced their mutual appreciation for each other's talents.<ref name ="Fed1">{{cite web | title = Fast Friendship Blossoms for World No. 1s | author = Steven Wine | date = 2007-03-22 | publisher = The Gazette, Canada | url = http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/sports/story.html?id=aa653c66-7c13-40e2-8a7f-c93b2a13c977&k=79783 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="Fed2">{{cite web | title = Dream pairing: Woods, Federer to play in Miami | author = Steven Wine | date = 2007-03-20 | publisher = [[USA Today]] | url = http://www.usatoday.com/sports/2007-03-20-3347014744_x.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="AP2006">{{cite web | title = Tiger Woods named AP male athlete of year | author = Associated Press | date = 2006-12-25 | publisher = CBC Sports | url = http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2006/12/25/woods-topathlete.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="Fed3">{{cite web | title = Federer pays Woods a visit during CA practice round | author = Associated Press | date = 2007-03-21 | publisher = ESPN/Golf Digest
| url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2807191 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
Woods began 2007 with a two-stroke victory at the [[Buick Invitational]] for his third straight win at the event and his seventh consecutive win on the PGA Tour. The victory marked the fifth time he has won his first tournament of the season. With this win, he became the third man (after [[Jack Nicklaus]] and [[Sam Snead]]) to win at least five times in three different events on the PGA Tour (his two other events are the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and WGC-CA Championship). He earned his second victory of the year at the [[WGC-CA Championship]] for his third consecutive and sixth win overall at the event. With this victory, he became the first player to have three consecutive victories in five different events.
At the [[2007 Masters Tournament]], Woods was in the final group on the last day of a major for the thirteenth time in his career, but unlike the previous twelve occasions, he was unable to win. He finished tied for second two strokes behind winner [[Zach Johnson]].
Woods earned his third victory of the season by two strokes at the [[Wachovia Championship]], the 24th different PGA Tour tournament he has won. He has collected at least three wins in a season nine times in his 12-year career. At the U.S. Open, he was in the final group for the fourth consecutive major championship, but began the day two strokes back and finished tied for second once again. His dubious streak of never having come from behind to win on the final day of a major continued.
In search of a record-tying third consecutive Open Championship, Woods fell out of contention with a second-round 75, and never mounted a charge over the weekend. Although his putting was solid (he sank a 90-footer in the first round), his iron play held him back. "I wasn't hitting the ball as close as I needed to all week," he said, after he finished tied for twelfth, five strokes off the pace.<ref>Associated Press (2007). [http://www.golfsurround.com/openchampionship/2007/news/woods072207.html Woods's bid for an Open three-peat ends in a whimper]. Retrieved on [[2007-07-24]].</ref>
In early August, Woods won his record 14th World Golf Championships event at the [[WGC-Bridgestone Invitational]] by 8 strokes for his third consecutive and sixth victory overall at the event. He became the first golfer to win the same event three straight times on two different occasions (1999-2001) and (2005-2007). The following week, he won his second straight PGA Championship by defeating [[Woody Austin]] by two strokes. He became the first golfer to win the PGA Championship in back-to-back seasons on two different occasions: 1999-2000 and 2006-2007. He became the second golfer, after Sam Snead, to have won at least five events on the PGA Tour in eight different seasons.
Woods earned his 60th PGA Tour victory at the [[BMW Championship (PGA Tour)|BMW Championship]] by shooting a course record 63 in the final round to win by two strokes. He sank a fifty-foot putt in the final round and missed only two fairways on the weekend. He led the field in most birdies for the tournament, and ranked in the top five in driving accuracy, driving distance, putts per round, putts per green, and greens in regulation. Woods finished his 2007 season with a runaway victory at the Tour Championship to capture his fourth title in his last five starts of the year. He became the only two-time winner of the event, and the champion of the inaugural [[FedEx Cup]]. In his 16 starts on Tour in 2007, his adjusted scoring average was 67.79, matching his own record set in 2000. His substantial leads over the second, third, and fourth players were similar in 2000 (1.46 ([[Phil Mickelson]]), 1.52 ([[Ernie Els]]), 1.66 ([[David Duval]])) and 2007 (1.50 (Els), 1.51 ([[Justin Rose]]), 1.60 ([[Steve Stricker]])).
[[Image:Tiger Woods.jpg|thumb]]
====2008: Injury-shortened season====
Woods started the 2008 season with an eight-stroke victory at the [[Buick Invitational]]. The win marked his 62nd [[PGA Tour]] victory, tying him with [[Arnold Palmer]] for fourth on the [[Golfers with most PGA Tour wins|all time list]]. This marked his sixth victory at the event, the sixth time he has begun the PGA Tour season with a victory, and his third PGA Tour win in a row. The following week, he was trailing by four strokes going into the final round of the [[Dubai Desert Classic]], but made six birdies on the back nine for a dramatic one-stroke victory. He took home his 15th World Golf Championships event at the [[2008 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship|Accenture Match Play Championship]] with a record-breaking 8 & 7 victory in the final.
In his next event, the [[Arnold Palmer Invitational]], Woods got off to a slow start, finishing the first round at even par and tied for 34th place. After finishing the third round in a five-way tie for first place, he completed his fifth consecutive PGA Tour victory with a dramatic 24-foot putt on the 18th hole to defeat [[Bart Bryant]] by a stroke. It was also his fifth career victory in this event. [[Geoff Ogilvy]] stopped Woods's run at the [[WGC-CA Championship]], a tournament Woods had won in each of the previous three years. He remains the only golfer to have had more than one streak of at least five straight wins on the PGA Tour.
Despite bold predictions that Woods might again challenge for the Grand Slam, he would never mount a serious charge at the [[2008 Masters Tournament]], struggling with his putter through each round. He would still finish alone in second, three strokes behind the champion, [[Trevor Immelman]]. On [[April 15]], [[2008]], he underwent his third left knee [[arthroscopic]] [[surgery]] in [[Park City, Utah]], and missed two months on the PGA Tour. The first surgery he had was in 1994 when he had a benign [[tumor]] removed and the second in December 2002.<ref>[http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hPuabYvDiDWueCDOns9r7AE_yo5g afp.google.com, Tiger Woods undergoes knee surgery]</ref> He was named ''[[Men's Fitness]]'''s Fittest Athlete in the June/July 2008 issue.<ref>{{cite web |title =Men's Fitness Names Tiger Woods the Fittest Guy in America in the Annual 25 Fittest Guys in America Issue |author = Jennifer Krosche |url= http://www.pr-inside.com/men-s-fitness-names-tiger-woods-the-r589714.htm |date = 2008-05-15 |accessdate = 2008-05-20}}</ref>
Woods returned for the [[2008 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2008 U.S. Open]] in one of the most anticipated golfing groupings in history<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/11/sports/golf/11golf.html?ref=golf Woods and Mickelson step in ring]</ref> between him, [[Phil Mickelson]] and [[Adam Scott]], the top three golfers in the world. Woods struggled the first day on the course, notching a double bogey on his first hole. He would end the round at +1 (72), four shots off the lead. He scored -3 (68) his second day, still paired with Mickelson, managing 5 birdies, 1 eagle and 4 bogeys. On the third day of the tournament, he started off with a double bogey once again and was trailing by 5 shots with six holes to play. However, he finished the round by making 2 eagle putts, a combined {{convert|100|ft|m}} in length, and a chip-in birdie to take a one shot lead into the final round. His final putt assured that he would be in the final group for the sixth time in the last eight major championships.
On Sunday, June 15, Woods began the day with another double bogey, and trailed [[Rocco Mediate]] by one stroke after 71 holes. He winced after several of his tee shots, and sometimes made an effort to keep weight off of his left foot. Woods was behind by one stroke when he reached the final hole. Left with a 12-foot putt for birdie, he made the shot to force an 18-hole playoff with Mediate on Monday.<ref>[http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/usopen08/news/story?id=3445094 Woods, Mediate tie for Open; playoff Monday]</ref><ref>{{cite web |title = Once, twice, three times a winner |author = Eddie Pells |url = http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/news?slug=ap-usopen-key&prov=ap&type=lgns |date = 2008-05-16 |accessdate = 2008-05-16}}</ref> Despite leading by as many as three strokes at one point in the playoff, Woods again dropped back and needed to birdie the 18th to force sudden death with Mediate, and did so. Woods made par on the first sudden death hole; Mediate subsequently missed his par putt, giving Woods his 14th major championship.<ref> [http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/usopen08/news/story?id=3446435 Tiger puts away Mediate on 91st hole to win U.S. Open]</ref> After the tournament, Mediate said "This guy does things that are just not normal by any stretch of the imagination," and [[Kenny Perry]] added, "he beat everybody on one leg."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080626/ap_on_sp_go_ne/glf_buick_open |title = Mediate makes the most of his brush with Tiger |author = Larry Lage |publisher = Associated Press |date = 2008-06-26 |accessdate = 2008-06-30}}</ref>
Two days after winning the U.S. Open, Woods announced that he would be required to undergo reconstructive [[anterior cruciate ligament]] (ACL) surgery on his left knee and would miss the remainder of the [[2008 PGA Tour|2008 golf season]] including the final two major championships: The Open Championship, and the PGA Championship. Woods also revealed that he had been playing for at least 10 months with a torn ligament in his left knee, and sustained a double [[stress fracture]] in his left [[tibia]] while rehabbing after the surgery he had after the Masters.<ref>{{cite web | title=Tiger Woods to Undergo Reconstructive Knee Surgery and Miss Remainder of 2008 Season | last=Steinberg | first=Mark | publisher=TigerWoods.com | date=2008-06-18 | accessdate=2008-06-18 | url=http://www.tigerwoods.com/defaultflash.sps}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080618/ap_on_sp_go_ne/glf_woods_future|title = Tiger won US Open with torn ligament, 2 fractures |author = Doug Ferguson |publisher = Associated Press |date = 2008-06-18 |accessdate = 2008-06-30}}</ref>
Publications throughout the world, including ''[[ABC]]'', ''[[ESPN]]'', ''[[Yahoo!|Yahoo]]'', the UK's ''Telegraph Golf'', and Australia's ''LiveNews'' all asserted his U.S. Open victory as "epic" and praised his efforts especially after learning of the extent of his knee injury. Woods called it "My greatest ever championship - the best of the 14 because of all the things that have gone on over the past week."<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/jun/17/usopengolf.tigerwoods |title = Woods savours 'greatest triumph' after epic duel with brave Mediate |author = Lawrence Donegan |publisher = The Guardian |date = 2008-06-17 |accessdate = 2008-06-30}}</ref>
==Playing style==
[[Image:TigerWoods2004RyderCup3.jpg|thumb|Woods practicing before [[2004 Ryder Cup]] at [[Oakland Hills Country Club]] in {{city-state|Bloomfield Hills|Michigan}}]]
When Woods first joined the professional tour in 1996, his long drives had a large impact on the world of golf.<ref>{{cite web |title = Woods threatens all records at the Masters |author = Associated Press |url = http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamGolf97Masters/apr12_mastersthird.html |date = 1997-04-12 | accessdate=2007-08-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://slam.canoe.ca/SlamGolf97Masters/apr13_tig.html |author = Associated Press |title= Tiger had more than just length at Augusta |date = 1997-04-13 |accessdate = 2007-08-06}}</ref> However, when he did not upgrade his equipment in the following years (insisting upon the use of True Temper Dynamic Gold steel-shafted clubs and smaller steel clubheads that promoted accuracy over distance),<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.golftransactions.com/equipment/truetemper070903.html |author = Cara Polinski |publisher = The Wire |title = True Temper Wins Again! |date =2003-07-08 |accessdate = 2007-08-06}}</ref> many opponents caught up to him. Phil Mickelson even made a joke in 2003 about Woods using "inferior equipment" (meaning outdated technology), which did not sit well with either Nike, Titleist or Woods.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/story?id=1507979 |title = Woods, Mickelson clear the air, put spat behind them |publisher = [[ESPN]] |date = 2003-02-13 |accessdate = 2007-08-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.golftoday.co.uk/news/yeartodate/news03/mickelson1.html |title = Phil Mickelson clarifies Tiger comments |accessdate = 2007-08-06}}</ref> During 2004, Woods finally upgraded his driver technology to a larger clubhead and [[graphite]] shaft, which, coupled with his prodigious clubhead speed, made him one of the Tour's lengthier players off the tee once again.
Despite his power advantage, Woods has always focused on developing an excellent all-around game. Although in recent years he has typically been near the bottom of the Tour rankings in driving accuracy, his iron play is generally as accurate as any player ever to play (including Jack Nicklaus and Ben Hogan){{Fact|date=March 2008}}, his recovery and bunker play is very strong, and his putting (especially under pressure) is possibly his greatest asset. He is largely responsible for a shift to higher standards of athleticism amongst professional golfers, and is known for putting in more hours of practice than most.<ref name="linkageinc"> {{cite web | title = CASE STUDY: Tiger Woods | publisher = Linkage Incorporated | url = http://www.linkageinc.com/company/news_events/link_learn_enewsletter/archive/2002/03_02_case_study_tiger_woods.aspx | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref><ref name="par"> {{cite web | title = When Par isn't good enough | url = http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:XkXY0D7wsSEJ:www.apmp.org/fv-63.aspx+tiger+woods+long+hours+of+practice&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=18&gl=us | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref><ref name ="CBS">{{cite web | title = Tiger Woods Up Close And Personal | publisher = [[CBS News]] | author = Ed Bradley | date = 2006-09-03 | url = http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/03/23/60minutes/main1433767_page5.shtml | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
Early in his professional career, Woods worked almost exclusively with leading swing coach Butch Harmon, with whom he started in 1993,<ref>{{cite book|title=The Pro: Lessons About Golf and Life from My Father, Claude Harmon, Sr.|author=Harmon, Butch |year=2006|publisher=Three Rivers Press|ISBN=0307338045}}</ref> but since March 2004, he has been coached by [[Hank Haney]]. In June 2004, Woods was involved in a media spat with Harmon, who works as a golf broadcaster, when Harmon suggested that he was in "denial" about the problems in his game, but they publicly patched up their differences.<ref name ="Harmon">{{cite web | title = Woods says relationship with Harmon 'much better' after call
| publisher = USA Today | author = Mike Dodd | date 2004-06-30 | url = http://www.usatoday.com/sports/golf/pga/2004-06-30-woods-harmon_x.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
While Woods is considered one of the most charismatic figures in golfing history, his approach is, at its core, cautious. He aims for consistency. Although he is better than any other Tour player when he is in top form, his dominance comes not from regularly posting extremely low rounds, but instead from avoiding bad rounds. He plays fewer tournaments than most professionals (15–21 per year, compared to the typical 25–30), and focuses his efforts on preparing for (and peaking at) the majors and the most prestigious of the other tournaments. His manner off of the course is cautious as well, as he carries himself in interviews and public appearances with a carefully controlled demeanor reminiscent of the corporate athlete persona developed between Nike and [[Michael Jordan]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.fairwaysgreens.com/article.asp?articleID=323 |author = Vic Williams |title = Long Daly's Night |date = 2005-Feb |accessdate = 2007-08-06}}</ref>
==Career achievements==
{{main|List of career achievements by Tiger Woods}}
As of June 2008, Woods has won 65 official PGA Tour events, an additional 22 individual professional titles, owns two team titles in the two-man World Golf Championships-World Cup, and won the inaugural FedEx Cup playoffs. He has successfully defended a title 21 times on the PGA Tour, has finished runner-up 24 times, third place 17 times, and has won 29% (65 out of 222) of his professional starts on the PGA Tour. He has hit a combined total eighteen holes-in-one in the course of his lifetime — his first at the age of six.<ref>{{cite web |title = With holes in one, no matter how you slice them, luck is vital|url =http://www.usatoday.com/sports/golf/2006-07-16-hole-in-one_x.htm |author=Jim Halley |publisher = USA Today |date = 2006-07-16 |accessdate=2007-10-02 }}</ref> He has a 31-6 record when leading after 36 holes in Tour events, and a 44–3 record when leading after 54 holes. He is 14-0 when going into the final round of a major with at least a share of the lead, and he has never lost any tournament when leading by more than one shot after 54 holes. He has been heralded as "the greatest closer in history" by multiple golf experts.<ref>{{cite web |title = Tiger is greatest closer ever|url =http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14002254/ |author=Mike Celizic |publisher = [[MSNBC]] |date = 2006-07-24 |accessdate=2007-08-12 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title = Goliath will surely fall one day. Or will he?|url =http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/2007/news/pga_maginnes_081207.html |author =John Maginnes |publisher =[[PGA Tour]]|date =2007-08-12 |accessdate = 2007-08-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title = Cabrera wins devilish battle at U.S. Open|url =http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/usopen07/news/story?id=2907111 |author =Associated Press |publisher = ESPN |date = 2007-06-20|accessdate =2007-08-12}}</ref> He owns the lowest career scoring average and the most career earnings of any player in PGA Tour history.
Woods has been the [[PGA Tour#Player and rookie of the year awards|PGA Player of the Year]] a record nine times, the [[PGA Tour#Money and most wins leaders by year|PGA Tour Money Leader]] a record-tying eight times (with Jack Nicklaus), the [[Vardon Trophy]] winner a record seven times, and the recipient of the [[Vardon Trophy|Byron Nelson Award]] a record eight times. He has spent over nine years atop the world rankings in his 12-year career. He is one of five players (along with [[Gene Sarazen]], Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, and [[Gary Player]]) to have won all four professional major championships in his career, known as the Career Grand Slam, and was the youngest to do so. [[Bobby Jones (golfer)|Bobby Jones]] won all four of what were in his era considered major championships. Woods is the only player to have won all four professional major championships in a row, accomplishing the feat in the 2000-2001 seasons. His win at the 2005 Open Championship made him only the second golfer (after Nicklaus) to have won all four majors more than once. With his win in the 2008 U.S. Open, Woods joins Nicklaus as the only golfers to win each major at least three times. He holds at least a share of the scoring record in relation to par in all four majors, and also holds the margin of victory record in two majors, The Masters and the U.S. Open.
At the 2003 Tour Championship, Woods set the all-time record for most consecutive [[professional golf tours|cuts]], starting in 1998, with 114 (passing Nelson's previous record of 113) and extended this mark to 142 before it ended on [[May 13]], [[2005]] at the [[EDS Byron Nelson Championship]]. Many consider this to be one of the most remarkable golf accomplishments of all time, given the margin by which he broke the old record (and against stronger fields in terms of depth than those in Nelson's day) and given that during the streak, the next longest streak by any other player was usually only in the 10s or 20s.<ref name ="Streak1">{{cite web | title = Tiger Woods fails to make the cut | publisher = The Hindi | author = Associated Press | date 2005-05-15
| url = http://www.hinduonnet.com/2005/05/15/stories/2005051504331800.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="Streak2">
Tim Rosaforte. A streak for the ages comes to an end. Golf World. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
<!-- cite web | title = A streak for the ages comes to an end | publisher = Golf World | author = Tim Rosaforte | date 2005-05-13 | url = http://www.golfdigest.com/newsandtour/index.ssf?/newsandtour/insider/20050513insider.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13 --><!-- Dead link inactive as of 2008-05-14. "Cite web" template deactivated because it displays a warning if it doesn't have a URL. --></ref><ref name ="Nelson">{{cite web | title= Nelson target in sight for title-hungry Tiger | publisher = Tiscali Sport | author = Mark Lamport-Stokes | date = 1997-04-23 | url=http://www.tiscali.co.uk/news/newswire.php/news/reuters/2006/10/04/sport/nelson-target-in-sight-for-title-hungry-tiger.html&template=/sport/feeds/story_template.html | accessdate = 2007-05-12}}</ref><ref name ="Nelson2">{{cite web | title = 'Lord Byron' leaves remarkable legacy | publisher = ESPN/GolfDigest | author = Mike Meserole | date 2006-10-03 | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2603730 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> With his victory at the 2006 [[WGC-American Express Championship]], he became the first player in PGA Tour history to win at least eight times in three seasons. His victory in the Buick Invitational in January 2007 placed him 2nd for the [[Longest PGA Tour win streaks|longest PGA Tour win streak]] at 7 straight, trailing only Byron Nelson's streak of 11 wins in 1945.
At the 2008 Arnold Palmer Invitational, Woods became the first golfer to win four PGA Tour events five or more times. In winning the U.S. Open in 2008, he became only the sixth person to win it three or more times, the first person to win a PGA Tour tournament on the same course seven times, and the first person to win two tournaments at the same golf course in the same season.
When Woods turned pro, [[Mike Cowan|Mike "Fluff" Cowan]] was his caddie until March 8, 1999.<ref name ="Fluff">{{cite web | title = Woods Dismisses His Caddie Cowan | publisher = [[The New York Times]] | date 1999-03-09 | url = http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E1DA113FF93AA35750C0A96F958260 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> He was replaced by [[Steve Williams (caddy)|Steve Williams]], who has become a close friend of Woods and is often credited with helping him with key shots and putts.<ref name ="Caddie">{{cite web | title = Tiger's Caddie Reflects on "Defining" Moment at Medinah | publisher = [[The Golf Channel]] | author = Associated Press | date 2006-08-08 | url = http://www.thegolfchannel.com/core.aspx?page=15101&select=20332 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
*'''[[List of career achievements by Tiger Woods#Amateur wins (11)|Amateur wins (11)]]'''
*'''[[List of career achievements by Tiger Woods#PGA Tour wins (65)|PGA Tour wins (65)]]'''
*'''[[List of career achievements by Tiger Woods#European Tour wins (7)|European Tour wins (7)]]'''
*'''[[List of career achievements by Tiger Woods#Other professional wins (17)|Other professional wins (17)]]'''
===Major Championships===
====Wins (14)====
{|class="wikitable"
|-
|width="35"|'''Year
|width="165"|'''Championship
|width="85"|'''54 Holes
|width="145"|'''Winning Score
|width="80"|'''Margin
|width="250"|'''Runner(s) Up
|-bgcolor="#D0F0C0"
| [[1997 Masters Tournament|1997]] ||[[The Masters Tournament|The Masters]] ||9 shot lead ||-18 (70-66-65-69=270) ||12 strokes ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Tom Kite]]
|-bgcolor="#D8BFD8"
| [[1999 PGA Championship|1999]] ||[[PGA Championship]] ||Tied for lead ||-11 (70-67-68-72=277)
||1 stroke ||{{flagicon|ESP}} [[Sergio García]]
|-bgcolor="#FBCEB1"
| [[2000 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2000]] ||[[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]] ||10 shot lead ||-12 (65-69-71-67=272) ||15 strokes ||{{flagicon|RSA}} [[Ernie Els]], {{flagicon|ESP}} [[Miguel Ángel Jiménez]]
|-bgcolor="#ABCDEF"
| [[2000 Open Championship|2000]] ||[[The Open Championship]] ||6 shot lead ||-19 (67-66-67-69=269) ||8 strokes ||[[Image:Flag of Denmark.svg|20px]] [[Thomas Bjørn]], {{flagicon|RSA}} [[Ernie Els]]
|-bgcolor="#D8BFD8"
| [[2000 PGA Championship|2000]] ||[[PGA Championship]] <small> (2)||1 shot lead ||-18 (66-67-70-67=270) ||Playoff <sup>1</sup> ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Bob May (golfer)|Bob May]]
|-bgcolor="#D0F0C0"
| [[2001 Masters Tournament|2001]] ||[[The Masters Tournament|The Masters]] <small> (2)||1 shot lead ||-16 (70-66-68-68=272) ||2 strokes ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[David Duval]]
|-bgcolor="#D0F0C0"
| [[2002 Masters Tournament|2002]] ||[[The Masters Tournament|The Masters]] <small> (3)||Tied for lead ||-12 (70-69-66-71=276) ||3 strokes ||{{flagicon|RSA}} [[Retief Goosen]]
|-bgcolor="#FBCEB1"
| [[2002 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2002]] ||[[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]] <small> (2)||4 shot lead ||-3 (67-68-70-72=277) ||3 strokes ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Phil Mickelson]]
|-bgcolor="#D0F0C0"
| [[2005 Masters Tournament|2005]] ||[[The Masters Tournament|The Masters]] <small> (4)||3 shot lead ||-12 (74-66-65-71=276) ||Playoff <sup>2</sup> ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris DiMarco]]
|-bgcolor="#ABCDEF"
| [[2005 Open Championship|2005]] ||[[The Open Championship]] <small> (2)||2 shot lead ||-14 (66-67-71-70=274) ||5 strokes ||[[Image:Flag of Scotland.svg|20px]] [[Colin Montgomerie]]
|-bgcolor="#ABCDEF"
| [[2006 Open Championship|2006]] ||[[The Open Championship]] <small> (3)||1 shot lead ||-18 (67-65-71-67=270) ||2 strokes ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris DiMarco]]
|-bgcolor="#D8BFD8"
| [[2006 PGA Championship|2006]] ||[[PGA Championship]] <small> (3)||Tied for lead ||-18 (69-68-65-68=270) ||5 strokes ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Shaun Micheel]]
|-bgcolor="#D8BFD8"
| [[2007 PGA Championship|2007]] ||[[PGA Championship]] <small> (4)|| 3 shot lead || -8 (71-63-69-69=272) ||2 strokes ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Woody Austin]]
|-bgcolor="#FBCEB1"
| [[2008 U.S. Open Golf Championship|2008]] ||[[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]] <small> (3)||1 shot lead ||-1 (72-68-70-73=283) ||Playoff <sup>3</sup> ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Rocco Mediate]]
|}
<sup>1</sup> Defeated Bob May in three-hole playoff by 1 stroke: Woods (3-4-5=12), May (4-4-5=13) <br>
<sup>2</sup> Defeated Chris DiMarco with birdie on first extra hole<br>
<sup>3</sup> Defeated Rocco Mediate with a par on 1st sudden death hole after 18-hole playoff was tied at even par
====Results timeline====
{| cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" border="1" style="font-size: 95%; border: #aaa solid 1px; border-collapse:collapse"
|- bgcolor="#eeeeee"
!align="left"|Tournament !! 1995 !! 1996 !! 1997 !! 1998 !! 1999 !! 2000 !! 2001 !! 2002 !! 2003 !! 2004 !! 2005 !! 2006 !! 2007 !! 2008
|-
|[[The Masters Tournament|The Masters]]
|align="center"|T41 <font size="1">LA</font>
|align="center"|CUT
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T8
|align="center"|T18
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|5
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center"|T15
|align="center"|T22
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T3
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T2
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|2
|-
|[[U.S. Open (golf)|U.S. Open]]
|align="center"|WD
|align="center"|T82
|align="center"|T19
|align="center"|T18
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T3
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center"|T12
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center"|T20
|align="center"|T17
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|2
|align="center"|CUT
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T2
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|-
|[[The Open Championship]]
|align="center"|T68<ref>{{cite web | title = Open - Past Results - Results for 1995, St Andrews | publisher = [[The Open Championship]] Official Website | author = The Open Championship Official Website | date = unknown | url = http://www.opengolf.com/history/past_results.sps?tourn=1995025&pageno=-1 | accessdate = 2007-06-16}} The official Open website shows T66 but does not count amateur finishes correctly.</ref>
|align="center"|T22 <font size="1">LA</font>
|align="center"|T24
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|3
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T7
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center"|T25
|align="center"|T28
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T4
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T9
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center"|T12
|align="center"|DNP
|-
|[[PGA Championship]]
|align="center"|DNP
|align="center"|DNP
|align="center"|T29
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T10
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center"|T29
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|2
|align="center"|T39
|align="center"|T24
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|T4
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''1'''
|align="center"|
|}
<br>
<font size="1">LA</font> = Low amateur<br>
DNP = Did not play<br>
WD = Withdrew<br>
CUT = Missed the half-way cut<br>
"T" = Tied <br>
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10.
===PGA Tour career summary===
{| cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" border="1" style="font-size: 95%; border: #aaa solid 1px; border-collapse: collapse;"
|- bgcolor="#eeeeee"
! Year !! Wins (Majors) !! Earnings ($) !! Money list rank
|-
|align="center"|1996
|align="center"|2
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/1996.html 790,594]
|align="center"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/1996/109.html 24]
|-
|align="center"|1997
|align="center"|4 (1)
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/1997.html 2,066,833 ]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/1997/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|1998
|align="center"|1
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/1998.html 1,841,117]
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/1998/109.html 4]
|-
|align="center"|1999
|align="center"|8 (1)
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/1999.html 6,616,585]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/1999/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|2000
|align="center"|9 (3)
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2000.html 9,188,321]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2000/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|2001
|align="center"|5 (1)
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2001.html 6,687,777]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2001/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|2002
|align="center"|5 (2)
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2002.html 6,912,625]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2002/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|2003
|align="center"|5
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2003.html 6,673,413]
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2003/109.html 2]
|-
|align="center"|2004
|align="center"|1
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2004.html 5,365,472]
|align="center" style="background:yellow;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2004/109.html 4]
|-
|align="center"|2005
|align="center"|6 (2)
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2005.html 10,628,024]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2005/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|2006
|align="center"|8 (2)
|align="right"|[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2006.html 9,941,563]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2006/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|2007
|align="center"|7 (1)
|align="right"| [http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/results/2007.html 10,867,052]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/2007/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|2008*
|align="center"|4 (1)
|align="right"| [http://www.pgatour.com/players/r/?/00/87/93/results 5,775,000]
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/current/109.html 1]
|-
|align="center"|'''Career*'''
|align="center"|'''65 (14)'''
|align="right"|'''[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/current/110.html 82,354,376]'''
|align="center" style="background:#00ff00;"|'''[http://www.pgatour.com/r/stats/current/110.html 1]'''
|}
:<nowiki>*</nowiki> Complete as of [[June 16]], [[2008]].
==Other ventures==
===Charity and youth projects===
Woods has established several charitable and youth projects.
*'''[[The Tiger Woods Foundation]]''': The Tiger Woods Foundation was established in 1996 by Woods and his father Earl. It focuses on projects for children. Initially these comprised golf clinics (aimed especially at disadvantaged children), and a grant program. Further activities added since then include university scholarships, an association with Target House at St. Jude Hospital in [[Memphis, Tennessee]]; the Start Something character development program, which reached one million participants by 2003; and the Tiger Woods Learning Center.<ref name="TWFoundation">{{cite web | title = The Steps We've Taken | publisher = [[Tiger Woods Foundation]] | url = http://www.tigerwoodsfoundation.org/history_and_timeline.php | accessdate = 2008-06-16}}</ref> The Tiger Woods Foundation recently has teamed up with the PGA Tour to create a new PGA tour event that will take place in the nation's capital (Washington, D.C.) beginning in July, 2007.<ref>{{cite web | title = Congressional will host Tiger, AT&T National | author = Associated Press | date = 2007-04-06 | publisher = ESPN | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2828393 | accessdate = 2008-06-16}}</ref>
*'''In The City Golf Clinics and Festivals''': Since 1997, the Tiger Woods Foundation has conducted junior golf clinics across the country.<ref name="TWFoundation"/> The Foundation began the “In the City” golf clinic program in 2003. The first three clinics were held in Indio, California, Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, and [[San Juan, Puerto Rico]], and were targeted to all youth, ages 7-17, and their families. Each three-day event features golf lessons on Thursday and Friday of clinic week and a free community festival on Saturday. Host cities invite 15 junior golfers to participate in the annual Tiger Woods Foundation Youth Clinic. This three-day junior golf event includes tickets to Disney Resorts, a junior golf clinic, and an exhibition by Tiger Woods.<ref>{{cite web | title = Tiger Foundation Sets Clinics | author = Golf Channel Newsroom | date = 2003-02-11 | publisher = The Golf Channel | url = http://www.thegolfchannel.com/core.aspx?page=15100&select=8322 | accessdate = 2008-06-16}}</ref>
*'''[[Tiger Woods Learning Center]]''': This is a {{convert|35000|sqft|m2|-2|sing=on}} educational facility in [[Anaheim, California]] which opened in February 2006. It is expected to be used by several thousand students each year in grades 4 to 12. The center features seven classrooms, extensive multi-media facilities and an outdoor golf teaching area.<ref name ="Centre">{{cite web | title = With Clinton at his side, Woods opens his learning center | author = Associated Press | date = 2006-02-10 | publisher = PGA Tour | url = http://www.pgatour.com/story/9223725/ | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title = Center takes shape | author = John Reger | date = 2005-05-26 | publisher = [[The Orange County Register]] | url = http://www.ocregister.com/ocr/sections/sports/golfextra/article_534700.php | accessdate = 2008-06-18}}</ref>
*'''Tiger Jam''': An annual fundraising concert which has raised over $10 million for the Tiger Woods Foundation. Past performers at Tiger Jam include [[Sting (musician)|Sting]], [[Bon Jovi]] and [[Stevie Wonder]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Tiger Jam | publisher = Tiger Woods Foundation | url = http://www.tigerwoodsfoundation.org/tiger_jam.php | accessdate = 2008-06-18}}</ref>
*'''[[Target World Challenge]]''': An annual off-season charity golf tournament. The event carries generous prize money, and in 2007 Woods donated his $1.35 million first-place check to his Learning Center.<ref>{{cite web | title = Woods closes out the year with a victory in Target World Challenge | author = Associated Press | date = 2007-12-17 | publisher = [[ESPN]] | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=golfonline&id=3157833 | accessdate = 2008-06-18}}</ref>
*'''Tiger Woods Foundation National Junior Golf Team''': An eighteen member team which competes in the annual [[Junior World Golf Championships]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Junior Golf Team | publisher = Tiger Woods Foundation | url = http://www.tigerwoodsfoundation.org/junior_golf_team.php | accessdate = 2008-06-18}}</ref>
Woods has also participated in charity work for his current caddy, Steve Williams. On [[April 24]], [[2006]] Woods won an [[auto racing]] event that benefited the Steve Williams Foundation to raise funds to provide sporting careers for disadvantaged youth.<ref name ="Char">{{cite web | title = Golf: Woods shows off his driving skills
| author = Associated Press | date = 2006-05-25 | publisher = International Herald Tribune | url = http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/04/24/sports/GOLf.php | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
===Writings===
Woods has written a golf instruction column for ''[[Golf Digest]]'' magazine since 1997,<ref>{{cite web | title = New deal includes instruction, Web pieces | author = Associated Press | date = 2002-05-08 | publisher = ESPN | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/story?id=1380039 | accessdate = 2008-06-18}}</ref> and in 2001 wrote a best-selling golf instruction book, ''How I Play Golf'', which had the largest print run of any golf book for its first edition, 1.5 million copies<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/2001-10-09-tiger-woods.htm |title=Tiger Woods joins the club of golf book authors |accessdate=2008-06-20 |accessmonthday= |accessdaymonth= |accessyear= |author= |last=Snider |first=Mike |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2001-10-09 |year= |month= |format= |work=[[USA Today]] |publisher=[[Gannett Company]] |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= }}</ref>.
===Golf course design===
{{main|Tiger Woods Design}}
Woods announced on [[December 3]], [[2006]] that he will develop his first golf course in [[Dubai, United Arab Emirates|the United Arab Emirates]] through his golf course design company, [[Tiger Woods Design]]. [[The Tiger Woods Dubai]] will feature a {{convert|7700|yd|adj=on}}, par-72 course named ''Al Ruwaya'' (meaning "serenity"), a {{convert|60000|sqft|m2|-3|sing=on}} clubhouse, a golf academy, 320 exclusive villas and a boutique hotel with 80 suites. Tiger Woods Dubai is a joint venture between Woods and [[Tatweer]], a member of the government-affiliated Dubai Holding. Woods chose Dubai because he was excited about the "challenge of transforming a desert terrain into a world-class golf course." The development is scheduled to be finished in late 2009 at [[Dubailand]], the region's largest tourism and leisure project.<ref name="dubai1">[[Associated Press|AP]], [http://www.pgatour.com/story/9846849/ "Tiger to build first course in Dubai"], ''GolfWeb Wire Services, PGATour.com'', [[2006-12-03]], Retrieved on [[2007-07-08]].</ref>
On [[August 14]], [[2007]], Woods announced his first course to be designed in the U.S., [[The Cliffs at High Carolina]]. The private course will sit at about {{convert|4000|ft|m}} in the [[Blue Ridge Mountains]] near [[Asheville, North Carolina]].<ref name='espn'>{{cite web | title = Tiger to design his first U.S. course | publisher = ESPN.com | url = http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=2974491 | accessdate = 2007-08-15}}</ref>
===Endorsements===
[[Image:Woods photo shoot.jpg|thumb| Woods preparing for a photo shoot in 2006.]]
Woods has been called the world's most marketable athlete;<ref name="sbr1">Berger, Brian., [http://www.sportsbusinessradio.com/?q=node/616 "Nike Golf Extends Contract with Tiger Woods"], ''Sports business radio'', [[2006-12-11]], Retrieved on [[2007-09-14]].</ref> shortly after his 21st birthday in 1996, he began signing numerous endorsement deals with companies including [[General Motors]], [[Titleist]], [[General Mills]], [[American Express]], [[Accenture]] and [[Nike, Inc.]]. In 2000, he signed a 5-year, $105 million contract extension with Nike. It was the largest endorsing deal ever signed by an athlete at that time.<ref name="ad1">DiCarlo, Lisa., [http://www.forbes.com/2004/03/18/cx_ld_0318nike.html "Six Degrees Of Tiger Woods"], ''[[Forbes]].com'', [[2004-03-18]], Retrieved on [[2007-09-12]].</ref>
Woods's endorsement has been credited in playing a significant role in taking the Nike Golf brand from a "start-up" golf company earlier in the past decade, to becoming the leading golf apparel company in the world and a major player in the equipment and golf ball market.<ref name="sbr1" /><ref name="end1">[http://www.venturerepublic.com/resources/Branding_celebrities_brand_endorsements_brand_leadership.asp " Branding and Celebrity Endorsements"], ''VentureRepublic.com'', Retrieved on [[2007-09-14]].</ref> Nike Golf is one of the fastest growing brands in the sport, with an estimated $600 million in sales.<ref name="tm1">Park, Alice., [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1609776,00.html "Member of the Club"], ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]].com'', [[2007-04-12]], Retrieved on [[2007-09-12]].</ref> Woods has been described as the "ultimate endorser" for Nike Golf,<ref name="tm1" /> frequently seen wearing Nike gear during tournaments and even in advertisements for other products.<ref name="ad1" /> Woods receives a cut from the sales of Nike Golf apparel, footwear, golf equipment and golf balls<ref name="sbr1" /> and has a building named after him at Nike’s headquarters campus in [[Beaverton, Oregon]].<ref name="ad3">AP, [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7493465/ "Nike sees dollar signs in Woods’ magical shot"], [[2005-04-13]], Retrieved on [[2007-09-14]].</ref>
In 2002, Woods was involved in every aspect of the launch of [[Buick|Buick's]] [[Buick Rendezvous|Rendezvous]] [[SUV]]. A company spokesman stated that Buick is happy with the value of Wood's endorsement, pointing out that more than 130,000 Rendezvous vehicles were sold in 2002 and 2003. "That exceeded our forecasts," he was quoted as saying. "It has to be in recognition of Tiger." In February 2004, Buick renewed Woods's endorsement contract for another five years, in a deal reportedly worth $40 million.<ref name="ad1" />
Woods collaborated closely with [[TAG Heuer]] to develop the world's first professional golf watch, released in April 2005.<ref name="watch1">Krakow, Gary., [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9773121/ "Tiger Woods watch is a technological stroke"], ''[[MSNBC]].com'', [[2005-11-07]], Retrieved on [[2007-06-17]].</ref> The lightweight, [[titanium]]-construction watch, designed to be worn while playing the game, incorporates numerous innovative design features to accommodate golf play. It is capable of absorbing up to 5,000 [[g-force|Gs]] of shock, far in excess of the forces generated by a normal golf swing.<ref name="watch1" /> In 2006, the TAG Heuer ''Professional Golf Watch'' won the prestigious ''[[iF product design award]]'' in the Leisure/Lifestyle category.<ref name="watch2">[http://www.best-watch.net/news/tag-heuer-monaco-calibre.html "Tag Heuer's Innovative Creation Wins Prestigious Award"], ''best-watch.net Watch News'', [[2007-01-31]], Retrieved on [[2007-09-11]].</ref>
Woods also endorses the [[Tiger Woods PGA Tour]] series of video games; he has done so from 1999 up to 2007 and it is likely that he will continue to do so.<ref>''Official websites:''
[http://www.easports.com/games/tigerwoods2005/home.jsp Tiger Woods 2005 homepage], [http://www.easports.com/tigerwoods07/ Tiger Woods 2007 homepage], [http://www.easports.com/tigerwoods08/ Tiger Woods 2008 homepage],
[http://www.eamobile.com/tiger Tiger Woods 2007 Mobile Version]; Retrieved on [[2007-09-11]].</ref>
In February 2007, along with Roger Federer and [[Thierry Henry]], Woods became an ambassador for the "[[Global Gillette|Gillette]] Champions" marketing campaign. Gillette did not disclose financial terms, though an expert estimated the deal could total between $10 million and $20 million.<ref>{{cite web |title = Gillette lands a trio of star endorsers |author = Jenn Abelson |publisher = [[The Boston Globe]] |date = 2007-02-05 |accessdate = 2007-10-17 |url = http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2007/02/05/gillette_lands_a_trio_of_star_endorsers/}}</ref>
In October 2007, [[Gatorade]] announced that Woods will have his own brand of sports drink starting in March 2008. "Gatorade Tiger" marks his first U.S. deal with a beverage company and his first licensing agreement. Although no figures were officially disclosed, ''Golfweek'' magazine reported that it was for five years and could pay him as much as $100 million.<ref> {{cite web |title = Woods to have his own drink in firstt licensing deal | author=Doug Ferguson |date =2007-10-16 |accessdate = 2007-10-17 |url= http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/news?slug=ap-woods-gatorade&prov=ap&type=lgns}}</ref>
===Honors===
On [[August 20]], [[2006]], California Governor [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] and First Lady [[Maria Shriver]] announced that Woods would be inducted into the [[California Hall of Fame]]. He was inducted [[December 5]], [[2007]] at [[The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts]] in Sacramento.<ref>[http://www.californiamuseum.org/Exhibits/Hall-of-Fame/inductees.html "California Hall of Fame: 2007 Inductees"], ''californiamuseum.org'', Retrieved on [[2007-09-11]].</ref><ref>[http://www.nbc11.com/news/13970544/detail.html "Calif. Hall Of Fame Announces Class Of 2007"], ''[[NBC11]].com'', [[2007-08-24]], Retrieved on [[2007-09-11]].</ref>
==Critiques==
===Cut streak===
In both Nelson's and Woods's eras, "making the cut" has been defined as receiving a paycheck. However, in Nelson's day, only players who placed in the top 20 in an event won a paycheck whereas in Woods's day only players who reach a low enough score within the first 36 holes win a paycheck.<ref name ="Mag">{{cite web | title = Maginnes remembers Nelson | publisher = PGA Tour
| author = John Maginnes | date = 2006-09-27 | url = http://www.pgatour.com/story/9689507/ | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> Several golf analysts argue that Woods did not actually surpass Nelson's consecutive cuts mark, reasoning that 31 of the tournaments in which Woods competed were "no-cut" events, meaning all the players in the field were guaranteed to compete throughout the entire event regardless of their scores through 36 holes (and hence all "made the cut," meaning that they all received a paycheck). These analysts argue that this would leave Woods's final consecutive cuts made at 111, and Nelson's at 113.<ref name ="Streak4">{{cite web | title = Controversy Surrounds Tiger’s Cut Streak | publisher = GolfTodayMagazine | author = Ron Salsig | url = http://www.golftodaymagazine.com/0507Jul/tigercut.htm | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
However, at least ten of the tournaments in which Nelson played did not have modern-day cuts; that is, all of the players in these events were guaranteed to compete past 36 holes. The Masters, for example, did not institute a 36-hole cut until 1957 (which was well after Nelson retired), the PGA Championship was match play until 1958 and it is unclear whether or not three other events in which Nelson competed had 36-hole cuts.<ref name ="Masters">{{cite web | title = History of the Masters | publisher = Masters Tournament | url = http://www.masters.org/en_US/history/records/cutinfo.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref><ref name ="PGAHist">{{cite web | title = PGA Championship History | publisher = Professional Golfers Association | url = http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/2005/history_overview.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> Therefore, these analysts remove "no 36-hole cut" events from both cut streak measures, leaving Nelson's consecutive cuts made at 103 (or possibly less) and Woods's at 111.<ref name ="Streak5">{{cite web | title = Woods & Nelson's cut streaks examined | publisher = GolfToday | url = http://www.golftoday.co.uk/news/yeartodate/news05/woods21.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
In the tournaments in which Nelson competed that did not have 36-hole cuts (that is: the Masters, PGA Championship and the possible 3 other tournaments), only the top 20 players received a paycheck even though all players in these events were guaranteed to compete past 36 holes.<ref name ="Mag"/> Hence, in these no-cut events, Nelson still placed in the top 20, so Nelson's 113 cuts made are reflective of his 113 top 20 finishes. Woods achieved a top 20 finish 21 consecutive times (from July 2000 to July 2001) and, in the 31 no-cut events in which he played, he won 10 and finished out of the top 10 only five times. Others, including Woods himself, argue that the two streaks cannot be compared, because the variation of tournament structures in the two eras is too great for any meaningful comparison to be made.<ref name ="Streak5"/><ref name ="Streak4"/>
===Tiger-proofing===
Early in Woods's career, a small number of golf experts expressed concern about his impact on the competitiveness of the game and the public appeal of professional golf. Sportswriter Bill Lyon of [[Knight-Ridder]] asked in a column, "Isn't Tiger Woods actually bad for golf?" (though Lyon ultimately concluded that he was not).<ref name ="Bad">{{cite web | title = Woods bad for golf? There's an unplayable lie | publisher = [[The Philadelphia Inquirer]] | author = Bill Lyon | date = 2000-08-16 | url = http://www.texnews.com/tiger/bad0816.html | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref> At first, some pundits feared that Woods would drive the spirit of competition out of the game of golf by making existing courses obsolete and relegating opponents to simply competing for second place each week.
A related effect was measured by economist Jennifer Brown of the [[University of California, Berkeley]] who found that other golfers played worse when competing against Woods than when he was not in the tournament. The scores of highly skilled (exempt) golfers are nearly one stroke higher when playing against Woods. This effect was larger when he was on winning streaks and disappeared during his well-publicized slump in 2003-04. Brown explains the results by noting that competitors of similar skill can hope to win by increasing their level of effort, but that, when facing a "superstar" competitor, extra exertion doesn't significantly raise one's level of winning while increasing risk of injury or exhaustion, leading to reduced effort.<ref>Jennifer Brown, {{PDFlink|[http://are.berkeley.edu/~brown/Brown%20-%20Competing%20with%20Superstars.pdf ''Quitters Never Win: The (Adverse) Incentive E¤ects of Competing with Superstars'']|536 KB}}, Job Market Paper, November 2007</ref>
Many courses in the PGA Tour rotation (including Major Championship sites like [[Augusta National Golf Club|Augusta National]]) began to add yardage to their tees in an effort to slow down long hitters like Woods, a strategy that became known as "Tiger-Proofing". Woods himself welcomed the change as he believes adding yardage to the course does not affect his ability to win.<ref name ="Open2005">{{cite web | title = Tiger Woods Press Conference:The Open Championship | publisher = TigerWoods.com | author = ASAP Sports | date = 2005-07-12 | url = http://www.tigerwoods.com/defaultflash.sps?page=fullstorynews&iNewsID=199184&categoryID=&pagenumber=1&cat=0 | accessdate = 2007-05-13}}</ref>
===Ryder Cup performance===
Woods's performance in the [[Ryder Cup]] playing for the American team has been mediocre throughout the years. In his first [[1997 Ryder Cup|Ryder Cup in 1997]], he earned only 1½ points competing in every match and partnering mostly with [[Mark O'Meara]]. [[Costantino Rocca]] defeated Woods in his singles match. In [[1999 Ryder Cup|1999]], he earned 2 points over every match with a variety of partners. In [[2002 Ryder Cup|2002]], he lost both Friday matches, but, partnered with [[Davis Love III]] for both of Saturday's matches, won two points for the Americans, and was slated to anchor the Americans for the singles matches, both squads going into Sunday with 8 points. However, after the Europeans took an early lead, his match with [[Jesper Parnevik]] was rendered unimportant and they halved the match. In [[2004 Ryder Cup|2004]], he was paired with Phil Mickelson on Friday but lost both matches, and only earned one point on Saturday. With the Americans facing a 5-11 deficit, he won the first singles match, but the team was not able to rally. In [[2006 Ryder Cup|2006]], he was paired with [[Jim Furyk]] for all of the pairs matches, but they only won one point. Woods won his singles match, one of only three Americans to do so that day. Woods is 3-1-1 in singles matches but has a much worse record in the team matches, which has led critics to question his partnership abilities. As a point of comparison, in the [[Presidents Cup]], Woods is 3-2 in singles matches and 10-10 in partnership matches, and so a trend is not as clear.
==See also==
*[[Chronological list of World Number One male golfers]]
*[[Golfers with most major championship wins]]
*[[Golfers with most PGA Tour wins]]
*[[Longest PGA Tour win streaks]]
*[[Most PGA Tour wins in a year]]
*[[Most wins in one PGA Tour event]]
*[[Official World Golf Rankings]]
*''[[Tiger Woods PGA Tour]]''
==References==
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{{reflist|2}}
==Sources==
<div class="references-small">
* Earl Woods (1999). ''Training a Tiger: A Father's Guide to Raising a Winner in Both Golf and Life'', G.K. Hall - ISBN 0783886225
* Tiger Woods (2001). ''How I Play Golf'', [[Warner Books]] - ISBN 0446529311
* Lawrence J. Londino (2005). ''Tiger Woods: A Biography'', [[Greenwood Press]] - ISBN 0313331219
* {{cite book | author = John Andrisani | title = ''The Tiger Woods Way: An Analysis of Tiger Woods' Power-Swing Technique'' | publisher = [[Three Rivers Press]] | year = 1999 | id = ISBN 0-609-80139-2 (Paperback)}}
* {{cite book | author = John Feinstein | title = ''The Majors: In Pursuit of Golf's Holy Grail'' | publisher = [[Little, Brown]] | year = 1999 | id = ISBN 0-316-27971-4 (hardcover)}}
* {{cite book | author = Tim Rosaforte | title = ''Raising the Bar: The Championship Years of Tiger Woods'' | publisher = [[St. Martins Press]] | year = 2000 | id = ISBN 0-312-27212-X (hardcover)}}
* {{cite book | author = Jack Clary | title = ''Tiger Woods'' | publisher = Tiger Books International | year = 1997 | id = ISBN 1-85501-954-X (hardcover)}}
</div>
==External links==
{{wikiquote}}{{commons|Tiger Woods}}
*[http://www.tigerwoods.com/ Tiger Woods] Official Site
*[http://www.pgatour.com/players/00/87/93/ Tiger Woods] Profile on PGA Tour site
*[http://www.twfound.org Tiger Woods] Foundation
*[http://www.twlc.org/ Tiger Woods] Learning Center
*{{imdb name|id=0971329|name=Tiger Woods}}
*[http://www.officialworldgolfranking.com/players/bio.sps?ID=5321 Tiger Woods] Official World Golf Rankings site
*[http://www.mindrelish.com/tiger-woods-perfect-golf-swing Tiger Woods' Perfect Golf Swing Video]
*[http://www.mreplay.com/search_result.php?search_id=tiger+woods&search_typ=search_videos Tiger Woods's Videos on mReplay]
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{{succession box
| before=[[Michael Johnson (athlete)|Michael Johnson]]<br>[[Mark McGwire]]<br>[[Lance Armstrong]]
| title=[[Associated Press Athlete of the Year|Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year]]
| after=[[Mark McGwire]]<br>[[Barry Bonds]]<br>[[Tom Brady]]
| years=1997<br>1999, 2000<br>2006
}}
{{end box}}
{{Golf world number ones (men)}}
{{Top ten male golfers}}
{{The Masters champions}}
{{U.S. Open champions}}
{{The Open champions}}
{{PGA Champions}}
{{Male golfers who have won 2 or more Major Championships in one year}}
{{PGA Tour Rookie of the Year}}
{{PGA Players of the Year}}
{{Ryder Cup Squad 2004 America}}
{{Ryder Cup Squad 2006 America}}
{{SI Sportsman of the Year}}
{{Laureus World Sportsman of the Year}}
{{Tiger Woods}}
{{Persondata
|NAME=Woods, Eldrick "Tiger"
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Woods, Tiger
|SHORT DESCRIPTION=Golfer
|DATE OF BIRTH=[[December 30]] [[1975]]
|PLACE OF BIRTH=[[Cypress, California]]
|DATE OF DEATH =
|PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woods, Tiger}}
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