It’s becoming increasingly clear that Tiger Woods’ will fall short of his career-long target.
Tiger Woods’ relentless pursuit of Jack Nicklaus’ major record stopped three shy of his goal. After Woods won the Masters in 2019, the door creaked open for a moment, but a series of injuries and a life-threatening car crash all but ended the possibility.
At one point, it looked certain that Woods would break the record. He won his 14th major in 2008, just 11 years after his first at the 1997 Masters. Who knew that the greatest golfer of all time would have to wait another 11 years for his next?
Woods was the greatest amateur golfer to ever live. He is the only player in history to win six consecutive USGA amateur national championships, a run widely considered to be one of the most unbreakable records in sports.
And during that run, two years before Woods became the youngest-ever Masters winner, his father predicted how many majors he would win, and came shockingly close to getting it exactly right.
The amount of majors Tiger Woods’ dad said he would win in 1995
Woods is currently on 15 major championships, the second-most of any player, behind Nicklaus’ 18. While he had a historic amateur career, few would have predicted the run that Woods was about to go on.
But one man who saw it coming? Earl Woods, who made a prediction that was eerily accurate for a number of years.
How many majors would Tiger Woods have won without his injuries?
He told Sports Illustrated in 1995, “I’m going to make a prediction. Before he’s through, my son will win 14 major championships.”
So close, and if not for Woods’ miraculous Masters comeback in 2019, his dad would have been exactly correct.
What Tiger Woods said about his dad after winning his 15th major
A teary-eyed Woods reflected on his first Masters win 22 years before when he won his fifth Green Jacket in 2019. He called it a full-circle moment after celebrating with his children.
He said, “Then to have my kids there, it’s come full circle. My dad was here in 1997, and now I’m the dad with two kids there.”
He continued, “I mean there’s my dad, he shouldn’t have been there [in 1997]. He was recovering from a heart attack and heart surgery, and now my little boy Charlie, that embrace, it’s just special to have them here.”
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He also gave a word to his mum, who was at Augusta National to witness it. Woods said, “Twenty-two years between wins is a long time but it’s just unreal for me to experience this. My mum was here, she was there in 1997 as well so I just couldn’t be more happy and excited and I’m kind of at a loss for words really.”
It’s clear to see the impact Woods’ parents had on his career, as his mind went straight to them at the age of 43. And he was so happy to prove his old man wrong nearly a quarter of a century later.
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