Background Information
Tiger Wood’s immense contribution to the game of golf, through early entry, gym, and increased value, changed how the world perceives athleticism today. As soon as Woods came into the limelight in the late 1990s, he participated in and won many golf tournaments globally and broke many records (Tait, 2019). This agility established him as a force to reckon with in golf. Fortunately, Woods’ eyes were above records and wins. Instead, he raised the bar of athleticism by refining his skills and diversifying this sector more than the world had seen before. Woods’ level of mental toughness, physical fitness, and strategic approach in this game changed the rules of this game (Tait, 2019). Woods overcame the barrier of racial discrimination by refusing to define his limits. As a result, he evolved into a professional golfer that future generations from diverse cultural backgrounds emulate. Analyzing Tiger Woods’s contributions to golf could prove that he changed this game and the general athleticism.
Evolution of Golfing through Tiger Woods
Aligning Gym with Athletism
Before Tiger Woods came onto the scene, the sports fraternity considered golf a non-sporting activity. According to Tait (2019), most golfers spend their time training for the game. With Tiger Woods into the equation, this tradition became a thing of the past. Specifically, Woods introduced athletic-related activities where he spends most of his time in the gym engaging in physical exercises. Woods would wake up to run four miles before going into the gym for lift-ups. Afterward, Woods hit the golf balls for approximately three hours with short breaks. Later, he would run another four miles before joining his friends for some field activities such as basketball or tennis games. Despite his inability to adhere to this daily routine due to many surgeries and age factors, Woods inspired many modern sportsmen and women to embrace physical exercise. Golfers like Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka spend most of their time in gyms to enhance their physical shape before engaging in sporting activities. This trend has helped strengthen and increase their athleticism and golfing pace (Friedman, 2019). More so, physical exercises have enabled the modern-day generation of golfers to hit the ball at longer distances than their predecessors. Therefore, Tiger Woods’ ability to align gym activities with athleticism makes him a game-changer.
Role Modeling Future Generations
Tiger Woods’ entry into professional golfing at the tender age of 20 and after barely two years at Stanford University inspired many contemporary athletes. Fortunately, this 1994 university enrolment occurred courtesy of Wood’s unique golfing skills. Previously, golfers and other athletes needed four or more years at college before qualifying for the tour. However, this promising amateur field inspired his short-lived academic life at Stanford to become a professional golfer (Friedman, 2019). That was one year earlier than Nicklaus Jack, who left three years earlier. When Tiger’s golfing career proved beneficial, other golfers opted to shorten their college education for golfing. Whereas Spieth Jordan, Fowler Rickie, and Thomas Justin completed less than two years, Mcllroy Rory bypassed university for golfing. Besides inspiring younger generations to leave college early for golfing, Tiger Woods motivated them to embrace this game professionally. Without Tiger Woods, professional golfers such as Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChamneau, and Tony Finau could not have become PGA Tour Champions. Indeed, no one could hit the shots or hole the putts like him in this game. Therefore, Woods inspired all the Tour participants to emulate and perfect their golfing skills.
Increased TV coverage, Audience, Funding, and Wage
When Tiger Woods participated in the first Masters tournament in 1997, the event’s value was $2.7 million, of which the winner got $486,000. Two decades later, one master’s tournament value had soared to $11.5 million, with the winner pocketing $2.07 million. This rapid increase in value was due to Tiger Woods’ ability to create a global Superdome, which attracted more TV coverage and sponsorship deals in this game. Besides, when Woods became a professional golfer in 1996, Tom Lehman’s $1.7 million presented him as the highest-paid golfer (Tait, 2019). At that time, less than ten golfers had a net worth of $1million. Two decades later, Justin Thomas had accumulated $ 8.7 million from 23 tournaments, with 114 golfers having a net worth of more than $ 1.2 million. Tiger Woods’ earnings, particularly from the golf course, had earned him a fortune of $118.3 million. Woods’ young and captivating golfing approaches brought him vast audiences, loyal fans, sponsors, and multi-million dollar deals. When Woods participated in and won the 1997 Masters tournament, more than 43 million people watched this game on CBS television (Svrluga, 2019). To date, no golf tournament has ever broken this record.
Tiger Proofing, Evolved Augusta National, and Elevated Golf Courses
Tiger Woods’ ability to hit the golf ball 25 yards away than other golfers off the tee and his scoring record during the 1997 Masters tournament changed Augusta National’s view of golfing. That happened after Tiger Woods had defeated his opponent by a record of 12 shots. In 2001, Tiger won the second green jacket, prompting Augusta National to adjust some golfing rules (Tait, 2019). One player could not tear up the course in the new setup. In 2022, Augusta National called for longer holes and more trees to the side of many fairways. This entity called for the backward moving of trees and the narrowing of fairways. More adjustments that came with Woods include deepening the bunkers, replacing greens, and elongating the fifth hole (Svrluga, 2019). Therefore, Tiger Woods’ manipulation of the balls forever changed the golfing and athletics rules.
Conclusion
Tiger Woods’ ability to elevate athleticism, diversity, and skill changed the game of golf forever. Besides clinging gym to athleticism, Woods inspired future generations to embrace this sport. More so, Woods’ agility in the game increased media coverage, funding, and golfers’ incomes. More so, Tiger’s unique golfing approaches helped change field requirements into more fascinating attributes. Woods will remain the pillar of golf and athleticism worth emulation despite his potential retirement from professional golfing.
References
Friedman, L. T. (2019). Tiger Woods and the game of life. The New York Times, April 14. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/15/opinion/tiger-woods-masters.html
Svrluga, B. (2019). Tiger Woods gave golf another unaffordable moment And begins a new chapter. The Washington Post, April 14.https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/golfhtml.
Tait, C. (2019). How Tiger Woods changed the game of Golf. Today’s’ Golfer, April 17.https://www.todays-golfer.com/news-and-events/tour-news/2019/april/how-tiger-woods-changed-the-game/
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