Born: December 30, 1975
Birthplace: Cypress, California
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 185 lbs.
Turned Pro: 1996
Bio
There is no disputing the talent that this young man possesses on the golf course. Even with the struggles he went through last year with all of the swing changes there really isn't a weakness in his game.
We have all seen the video clips of Tiger swinging golf clubs as a young boy. He has been playing the game pretty much since he was able to walk. As a young man Tiger won the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship three years in a row when no other player had ever won it more than once. He followed that up by winning the U.S. Amateur three years in a row while attending college at Stanford. Almost immediately after, Woods decided to go pro.
Since then it has been astonishing to watch what Woods can do on a golf course. When he is on top of his game he is a dominant force and even when he's not he can still win tournaments. He has set numerous scoring records and at one time was the titleholder for every Major Championship when he won the "Tiger Slam."
At the age of 29 many already consider Tiger Woods to be the best player to ever play the game. While it might seem a little premature for such statements he's got a lot of years left to break the rest of Jack's records and prove it once and for all.
Quick Facts
PGA TOUR Victories
(43) 1996 Las Vegas Invitational, Walt Disney World/Oldsmobile Classic. 1997 Mercedes Championships, Masters Tournament, GTE Byron Nelson Golf Classic, Motorola Western Open. 1998 BellSouth Classic. 1999 Buick Invitational, Memorial Tournament, Motorola Western Open, PGA Championship, WGC-NEC Invitational, National Car Rental Golf Classic/Disney, THE TOUR Championship, WGC-American Express Championship. 2000 Mercedes Championships, AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, Bay Hill Invitational, Memorial Tournament, U.S. Open Championship, British Open Championship, PGA Championship, WGC-NEC Invitational, Bell Canadian Open. 2001 Bay Hill Invitational, THE PLAYERS Championship, Masters Tournament, Memorial Tournament, WGC-NEC Invitational. 2002 Bay Hill Invitational presented by Cooper Tires, Masters Tournament, U.S. Open Championship, Buick Open, WGC-American Express Championship. 2003 Buick Invitational, WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, Bay Hill Invitational presented by Cooper Tires, 100th Western Open presented by Golf Digest, WGC-American Express Championship. 2004 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. 2005 Buick Invitational, Ford Championship at Doral, Masters Tournament.
International Victories
(7): 1997 Asian Honda Classic. 1998 Johnnie Walker Classic [Asia]. 1999 Deutsche Bank Open-TPC of Europe [Eur], World Cup of Golf [indiv]. 2000 Johnnie Walker Classic. 2001 Deutsche Bank-SAP Open TPC of Europe. 2002 Deutsche Bank-SAP Open TPC of Europe.
Other Victories
(8): 1998 PGA Grand Slam of Golf. 1999 World Cup [with Mark O’Meara], PGA Grand Slam of Golf. 2000 EMC World Cup [with David Duval]. PGA Grand Slam of Golf. 2001 Williams World Challenge, PGA Grand Slam of Golf. 2002 PGA Grand Slam of Golf.
Equipment
Tiger is one player who won't tinker with his clubs. He is very particular about the clubs he plays and once he is comfortable with a club he doesn't like to change it.
The biggest proof of this is in the driver. For the longest time Tiger stuck with a smaller driver switching back and forth between a Nike prototype and a Titleist 975D. Finally he went to the Ignite 410 and then in the fall went right up to the Ignite 460. Whether it's a coincidence or not since putting the 460 in his bag Tiger has been one of the hottest players in the world. His Ignite is an 8.5 degree lofted head with a Grafalloy Blue prototype shaft X-flex. The driver and all other clubs have a Golf Pride Tour Wrap 58 grip.
The 3-wood that Tiger uses has been in his bag forever; it is a Titleist Pro Trajectory 970. This is the club that Titleist tried to re-release a couple of years ago but it never really took off. The club has a deeper face than most 3-woods and is designed for control not forgiveness. The head that Tiger uses has 15 degrees of loft and has a Dynamic Gold X100 shaft.
His irons are a Nike Forged Blade head. Because Tiger is so particular about his clubs, every iron in the set was tested and fitted for him for everything from size, profile, shape, bounce, loft, and lie. He uses the blades from 2-PW with Dynamic Gold X100 shafts. Irons are all 1-degree upright and swingweighted at D4.
Tiger carries two different wedges in his bag. He carries a 56-degree Nike Pro Combo wedge. This wedge has a forged head. He also carries a 60-degree Nike TW wedge. This is the same model that can be found in golf shops now except his version doesn't have the TW stamp on the back. This is also a forged wedge.
The biggest weapon in Tiger's bag is the putter. How many clutch putts has he made over the years? Whenever it seems like he is struggling or needs a boost all of a sudden he'll sink a crucial putt to get himself back in a tournament. The putter he uses is a Scotty Cameron Studio Stainless Newport 2. For as long as I can remember Tiger has used the Newport 2, first in the Pro Platinum and now in the Studio. His specs are standard and the putter is at 35.
The only ball that Tiger will play is the Nike One Gold number 1's.
UPDATE March 9, 2005 – A question about Tiger’s 3 wood. Tiger currently hits the Nike T60 3 wood with a silver Mitsubishi Diamana shaft. The shaft looks a lot like a steel shaft because of it’s silver/chrome finish. Thanks for the email!