Eldrick Woods was born in Cypress, California to Earl Woods, an African American retired lieutenant colonel from the American Army, and Kutilda Woods, a Thai national. His nickname Tiger was patterned after the nickname of his father’s friend Vuong Dang Phong, a Vietnamese soldier

Even at a very tender age, Tiger Woods showed a keen interest in golf, as when he was only six months old, he tried to imitate his father and watch him hit golf balls into a net. At two years old he already appeared on the Mike Douglas Show playing golf with Bob Hope. At the age of five he was featured in Golf Digest and he made an appearance in ‘That’s Incredible’ in ABC. At eight years old he showcased his talents in Good Morning America and won the 1884 Junior World Golf Championships. During the ages of 8, 9, 12, 13, 14 and 15 his golfing skills were unparalleled, being the youngest player to have ever won the Optimist International Junior tournament and only player to have won multiple times.

As a boy, Tiger loved skateboarding and riding the bicycle, but he also had trouble speaking. Tiger overcame this by possessing an intense desire to win and by talking to the family dog. He studied high school in Anaheim, California at Western High School. The usual challenges of adolescence and high school did little to prevent Tiger from soaring and playing the game that he loved. It was in 1992, when Tiger was only 16 years old, when he entered his very first professional golf tournament. This was the 1992 Nissan Los Angeles Open. The following year Tiger joined three PGA Tour competitions. In 1994 he joined three more PGA Tour events and placed 34th in the Johnnie Walker Asian Classic in Thailand. It was also that year when Tiger triumphed in the Western Amateur. He represented the United States in the World Amateur Golf Team Championships which was held in France. Tiger was the youngest player to have won that event. It was the year 1995 when Tiger won the Walker Cup Match in Wales.

During the length of Tiger’s amateur golf career he had won an impressive three consecutive US Amateur title also being the youngest to have done so. He was the youngest ever to have won the US Junior Amateur and the only player to have won more than once. Tiger studied at Stanford University for two years, but he decided to leave college and pursue a life as a professional golfer.

It was when Tiger won the U.S. Masters in 1997, at the age of 21, with a magnificent score of 270, did his star truly shine being the youngest and the first ever African American to have done so. In the course of the years Tiger have won the 1999 and 2000 US PGA title. He also won the US Open in 2000 and 2002 and U.S. Masters in 2001 and 2002. In 2003 Tiger would win five more tournaments including the Buick Invitational and the Western Open. In 2004 Tiger married his long time girlfriend and Swedish model Elin Nordegren. In 2005 he won six major tournaments and was hailed the PGA Tour Player of Year, his seventh time in a span of nine years.

In 2006 Tiger would suffer a devastating loss when his father Earl, then 74 years old, would succumb to prostrate cancer. Tiger tried to play at the US Open that same year but his grief is evident as he failed to qualify for the major, his very first time to have done so in his career.

Tiger was able to overcome this and won various events including the British Open and the PGA Championship. It was also in 2006 that Tiger would open the Tiger Woods Learning Center in Anaheim, California. He spent $5 million on the Center with the purpose of guiding and mentoring children from 10 to 18 years of age. The foundation also offers some academic courses and programs for the children. Tiger also hosts an annual concert called ‘Tiger Jam’ which is a fundraiser for Tiger’s foundation. In 2007 he won the US PGA Championship and the World Golf Championship. In February 2008, Tiger won his third WGC Match Play Championship title.

I’m pretty sure Tiger Woods would win more golf tournaments but when one looks at Tiger Woods, one does not simply see an accomplished athlete and a golf player. One sees a man driven by excellence and honed through time. His sheer talent leaves one in awe but his quiet strength and his innate love to help others in need are the qualities that are even more inspiring and that merits him the title of a legend in the making.