1. Birth: Tiger Woods was born on December 30, 1975 in Cypress, California, USA to parents Kultilda (Punsawad) Woods and Earl Woods
2. Name: Tiger Woods’ real name is Eldrick Tont Woods. His father nicknamed him ‘Tiger’ after a South Vietnamese soldier his father had fought alongside in the Vietnam War
3. Growing up: His father was Tiger’s golf mentor and coach for many years and played an important role in Tiger’s life until his death in 2006. Tiger Woods himself has said that “his parents, along with Nelson Mandela, have been his greatest inspiration”
4. Early start: His appearance in golf started early; in 1978 when Tiger was just 2 years old he putted against Bob Hope on the American TV show ‘The Mike Douglas Show’. At 5 years old he was featured in Golf Digest magazine
5. Religion: Tiger Woods was raised a Buddhist and remains a Buddhist
6. Marriage: Tiger Woods married Swedish model Elin Nordegren on October 5, 2004. They divorced on August 23, 2010. The divorce followed an infidelity scandal in December 2009, in which he admitted to having more than a dozen mistresses. He said of the affair: “I felt I had worked hard all my life and deserved to enjoy all the temptations around me. I felt entitled. Thanks to money and fame, I didn’t have to look far to find temptation. I was wrong. I was a fool.” After the scandal, several of his major sponsors pulled out and his overall popularity declined. In March 2003, Tiger Woods announced that he had begun a relationship with skier Lindsey Vonn
7. Kids: Tiger and Elin have children Charlie Axel (born February 8, 2009) and Sam Alexis (born June 18, 2007)
8. Education: Tiger Woods studied at Stanford University from 1994-1996. However, he didn’t finish his degree and dropped out to become a professional golfer. His golfing buddies at university nicknamed him ‘Urkel’
9. Career: Tiger Woods became a professional golfer in 1996 and by this time was already well known in golfing circles. He gained international recognition in 1997 when he won the US Masters golf tournament, setting a record score of 270. At 21, he also became the youngest ever winner of the tournament. Over time, he has won 79 official PGA tournaments, which includes 14 major championships
10. Appointments: In December 2009, Tiger Woods was named ‘Athlete of the Decade’ by the world’s oldest and largest news organization, the Associated Press. He has also been named ‘Athlete of the Year’ 4 times. He is also credited with increasing golf’s popularity, prize money and overall spectator and fan following

Fact: Tiger Woods was the first sports star to earn USD 1 billion from his sport. Today, he is one of the highest paid athletes in the world

More facts about Tiger Woods

• Syn: Tiger Woods has always had poor eyesight and has undergone two eye surgeries; first in 1999 and most recently in 2007
• Economy: Tiger Woods was the first sports star in history to earn USD 1 billion from his sport. Today, he is one of the highest paid sports stars in the world
• Music: Tiger Woods’ favorite music includes U2, Boys II Men and Janet Jackson
• Movie: Tiger Woods’ favorite movie is ‘Caddyshack’ (a golf comedy from 1980…). He also loves the ’48 Hours’ series and all James Bond movies (especially the older ones starring Sean Connery)
• Perfect day: A perfect day for Tiger Woods is a day where he surfs, skis, golfs and spearfishes – all in the same day!
• Red polos: Tiger Woods has four red Nike polos in his wardrobe and one of the four polos he has won 37 tournaments with (i.e. he has only worn the one polo for all 37 tournaments). Tiger Woods’ red polos are a tribute to his alma mater, Stanford University. On the last day of every tournament, he consistently wears a red polo
• Caublinasian: Tiger Woods uses the term ‘Caublinasian’ to describe his mixed race relationship (Caucasian, African American, American Indian and Asian)
• Quote by Tiger Woods: “The best thing about tomorrow is that I will be better than I am today. And that’s how I look at my life. I will be a better golfer, a better person, a better father, a better husband, a better friend. That’s the beauty of tomorrow.”