More Than Just An Athlete: Tiger Woods (part 3)

When Tiger Woods won the Masters in 1997 by an unprecedented twelve strokes, the golfing world hailed him as golf’s new messiah. It was his first major tournament and not only had Tiger decimated the field, he posted 18-under par, the lowest score ever in Masters history. It had been almost two decades since the days of Palmer and Nicklaus and golf was seemingly welcoming its savior. Lee Elder, who watched Woods put on the Green Jacket with tears in his eyes, claimed that “After this, no one will turn their heads when a black man walks to the first tee.”[1]

With his towering drives and energetic fist pumps, Tiger was revitalizing a sport that had fallen into the stereotypes of boredom and old-fashioned curmudgeons. Indeed, in the eleven years since Woods captured his first tournament, his impact on the game has been unparalleled. No one has dominated the sport to the degree that Tiger has. He is the youngest player to achieve the career Grand Slam, and the youngest and fastest to win 50 tournaments on Tour. Woods has held the number one position in the world rankings for the most consecutive weeks and for the greatest total number of weeks. He has been awarded PGA Player of the Year a record nine times, the Byron Nelson Award for lowest adjusted scoring average a record eight times, and has tied Jack Nicklaus's record of leading the money list in eight different seasons. He has been named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year four times, a record he shares with Lance Armstrong. He is also the only person to be named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year more than once.[2] Other achievements and broken records would take the rest of this paper to list. To be sure, Woods is towering over the game in unprecedented fashion.

His supremacy has changed how other players play and the way many view the game of golf. Dominant golfers have always been powerful but Tiger has certainly raised the bar. Others on Tour note that, often, they are simply playing for second place. Woods has forced others to change their approach to the game with renewed dedication and vigor. Before Woods, golf was a sport that could be played with a beer-gut and a hotdog induced waistline. But when Tiger won the Players Championship in 1999, where he beat Davis Love III by four shots, Love said “He has proven to me that I have to get stronger.”[3] Now, following in Tiger’s footsteps, Tour pros are dedicating themselves to rigorous exercise routines and the athleticism on Tour has certainly risen. In the same way that Ben Hogan invented practice in golf, Tiger has essentially introduced exercise regimens to golf. The power game that Woods has brought to the sport has induced an effect called “Tiger Proofing” whereby golf courses are being lengthened to reign in both Woods and other long hitters. For instance, when Woods won the Masters in 1997 the course measured 6,925 yards. Today, the course measures 7,445 yards after yearly altering and lengthening. Tiger’s mere presence on the course has raised the bar in golf. He has made others better. That is a sign of not only true excellence but of revolutionizing power. Ernie Els, the world’s number three golfer, remarked that “The standard of play on Tour the last three years has definitely increased [because of Tiger]. The whole standard of the Tour has really risen.”[4]

Tiger’s dominance and impact on Tour is remarkable and certainly praiseworthy. Indeed, there is a legitimate case to be made that Tiger will go down as golf’s greatest player ever. Nevertheless, many hail Tiger for a different reason. Such people view Tiger more as a cause for social change than as a record breaker. Because of Woods’ minority status they see him as taking up the work of black golf leaders such as Charlie Sifford and Lee Elder. Indeed, there is something significant in the fact that Woods, as a minority, has been accepted by the golfing community and it is interesting to explore why.

[1] Lee Elder, quoted in James Corrigan, “Dawn of the Tiger,” The Independent (London), (April 2, 2007), 51.
[2] All stats and records found on Tiger Woods profile at PGATour.com
[3] Love, quoted in Jerry Potter, “In All Facets of the Game, Tiger Leads the Way,” USA Today, (January 8, 2004)
[4] Els, quoted in Potter, “In All Facets of the Game”