Tiger Woods turns 50: Here are 5 memorable career moments

For more than a decade, Woods was the most dominant professional athlete in sports. The fist pump. The red shirt on Sundays. The incredible short game and length off the tee, coupled with his icy demeanor, made Woods the most dominant player of the past 35 years.

Woods is now eligible to play on the PGA Tour Champions circuit, but he has yet to announce whether he will compete on the senior tour.

The 2025 season marked the first time since he turned pro that Woods did not compete in a tournament on the PGA Tour. The death of his mother, Kultida, on Feb. 4, coupled with a ruptured Achilles tendon the following month, kept him off the course. In October, he had back surgery to replace a disk in his lower back.

Woods was always comfortable in front of crowds and the camera, starting with his appearance on the “Mike Douglas Show” when he was 2 years old. Woods impressed Douglas, comedian Bob Hope and actor Jimmy Stewart with his form.

It would not be the last time Woods was impressive. It would be easy to include 50 memorable moments, but here are five.

1997 Masters

Woods said “hello” to the PGA Tour in a big way at Augusta National.

After a slow start on the front nine of the first round -- he shot 4-over-par 40 -- Woods caught fire on the back, carding a 30 to put him three shots off the lead.

He followed with scores of 66 and 65, setting a Masters record for lowest back-to-back rounds.

His final-round 69 gave him a course-record 270 and a staggering 12-shot margin of victory.

Tiger Slam (2001)

Only six players in pro golf history have won the “modern” men’s career grand slam, taking the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and the PGA Championship.

Woods is one of them, along with Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Rory McIlroy.

Only one player -- Bobby Jones -- held all four grand slam titles in the same calendar year. That was in 1930, when he won the U.S. Amateur, British Amateur and the British Open.

Woods completed his version of the Slam in 2001. He won the 2000 U.S. Open, the British Open and the PGA Championship, then followed it up by winning the 2001 Masters, taking his second green jacket.

2019 Masters

Woods won a tournament for the ages in Augusta in the spring of 2019. Injuries and personal demons had dogged Woods over the past few years, but he paid attention to the little details and won the green jacket for the fifth time.

He played smart, calculating golf, choosing the right club at No. 12 to safely cross Rae’s Creek, for example.

And when he nailed down his 15th major title, Woods hugged his children, Sam and Charlie, in an emotional moment behind the 18th green.

2000 U.S. Open

Woods spread-eagled the field at Pebble Beach, winning by a mind-boggling 15 shots.

He led by just one shot after one round, but Woods shifted his game into high gear, taking a six-shot lead after 36 holes. He expanded it to 10 shots after three rounds and then cruised to a 15-shot victory.

Woods was the only player in the tournament to finish under par.

2008 U.S. Open

Woods, coming off knee surgery, struggled during the early rounds of the tournament and stood at 3-over-par after the front nine of Friday’s second round.

But then Woods caught fire, shooting 30 on the back nine at Torrey Pines to get within one shot of the lead.

During Saturday’s third round, he sank a 65-foot eagle putt at No. 13 and chipped in for birdie at No. 17. He ended the round with another eagle to take the lead.

Woods lost the lead during Sunday’s final round on the back nine after bogeys at Nos. 13 and 15. But he drained a long putt at No. 18 to force a playoff with Rocco Mediate, punctuating the putt with his head back and a vigorous fist pump.

That forced an 18-hole playoff on Monday, and when both players finished the round all even, they went to a 19th hole. Woods parred No. 7, but Mediate bogeyed, giving Woods a dramatic victory.