Tiger Woods

Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods, born December 30, 1975, is an American professional golfer widely regarded as one of the greatest golfers of all time and one of the most famous athletes in modern history. He is tied with Sam Snead for the most PGA Tour wins at 82 and ranks second in men's major championships with 15, behind Jack Nicklaus's 18. Woods is an inductee of the World Golf Hall of Fame and holds numerous records in golf.

Woods was born in Cypress, California, a suburb of Los Angeles, to Earl and Kultida "Tida" Woods. His father was a retired U.S. Army officer and Vietnam War veteran of African-American, European, Chinese, and Native American descent, while his mother was originally from Thailand and of Thai, Chinese, and Dutch descent. Woods coined the term "Cablinasian" to describe his ethnic background. Introduced to golf before age two by his father, Woods was a child prodigy who appeared on television shows and won six Junior World Golf Championships. He attended Western High School in Anaheim, where he became the youngest U.S. Junior Amateur champion at age 15, ultimately winning the title three consecutive times.

In 1994, Woods enrolled at Stanford University on a golf scholarship to major in economics. That same year, he became the youngest winner of the U.S. Amateur, a title he successfully defended in 1995 and 1996 to become the first golfer to win three consecutive U.S. Amateur championships. He also won the 1996 NCAA individual golf championship and tied the record for an amateur aggregate score at The Open Championship. After two years at Stanford, Woods left college to turn professional in August 1996 at age 20.

Upon turning professional, Woods signed endorsement deals with Nike, Inc. and Titleist. In April 1997, at age 21, he won his first major at the Masters by 12 strokes in a record-setting performance, becoming the tournament's youngest winner. Two months later, he reached number one in the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time. In 2000, Woods won the U.S. Open by a major record 15 strokes. By winning the 2001 Masters, he became the only player to hold four consecutive major titles simultaneously, a feat termed the "Tiger Slam." He held the world's top ranking for 264 consecutive weeks from August 1999 to September 2004, and again for 281 consecutive weeks from June 2005 to October 2010.

Woods's career later featured comebacks following injuries and personal issues. He took a hiatus from professional golf from December 2009 to April 2010 to address marital problems. Between 2014 and 2017, he underwent four back surgeries and dropped outside the top 1,000 world ranking. After returning to regular competition, he won the Tour Championship in September 2018 and captured the 2019 Masters, marking his first major victory in 11 years.

In February 2021, Woods survived a single-car collision requiring emergency surgery on his right leg and ankle, later returning to tour competition at the 2022 Masters. Throughout his career, Woods has been named PGA Player of the Year 11 times, AP Athlete of the Year four times, and Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year three times. He was a member of the winning United States team at the 1999 Ryder Cup and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in May 2019.