What Tiger Woods thought about Pebble Beach when he played it for the very first time

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Tiger Woods has conquered many iconic golf courses throughout his stunning career, but perhaps Pebble Beach tops the pile in that regard.

Woods produced a stunning putting display en route to winning the 2000 US Open at Pebble Beach, where he clinched a 15-stroke victory.

The legendary figure was the only player to finish under par at the major championship that year, with Woods almost lost for words after his 2000 US Open win.

He had only just conquered the Californian venue, with Woods having won the 2000 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

A very warm welcome unsurprisingly then went his way when he returned to Pebble Beach for the US Open in 2019.

What Tiger Woods thought of Pebble Beach after playing it for the first time

Ahead of another attempt at claiming a fourth US Open title six years ago, he was asked to recall the first time he played at Pebble Beach.

Woods responded: “Oh, the first time I ever played it I played with Pops. And hard to believe that it was under a hundred bucks to play.

“So my dad made a vow that he would never, ever play a round of golf where you had to play a hundred bucks or more. So luckily it was still under a hundred bucks then. And we got a chance to play Pebble Beach.”

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And when asked for his thoughts on the course, he said: “I didn’t hit it very far. I must have been nine or 10.

“It was a long, soft, wet golf course to me. But it was cool to see that the same thing we watch every year in, what, February, see where the pros play.

“And it was always cool for me to go down to Torrey Pines where they played the Andy Williams or LA, playing the LA Open, to go to Tour sites, and play the Tour sites. That’s always a pretty neat thrill as an amateur.”

How Tiger Woods described the course at Pebble Beach ahead of the 2019 US Open

Fast-forward from that very first attempt at Pebble Beach to the 2019 US Open, and Woods was a 15-time major champion.

He won The Masters shortly before his latest trip to California, where the home favourite would go on to finish T21st.

Woods also shared his feelings on the course before that finish, saying of his preparations for Pebble Beach that year: “Looking forward to it. It’s been a while since we played the US Open here.

“There’s nothing like playing a US Open setup here in the Pebble Beach. The golf course is not overly long. It’s not big in that regard, but man, it’s tricky.

“The greens are all slanted, very small targets. And if they ever firm up, then we have a totally different ballgame.”

Woods was joined by a handful of others on two-under for the week, having carded rounds of 70, 72, 71 and 69.

And it was his fellow American Gary Woodland who emerged victorious, claiming his only major championship win to date after finishing on 13-under.