Tiger Woods turns 50 years old today. Are you ready for the senior circuit, Mr. Woods?
For someone who grew up idolizing him, this milestone is making me feel incredibly old.
In a weird way, I am still grieving how we don’t get to see Tiger play meaningful golf anymore (TGL and ceremonial major starts only go so far). His comeback in 2018-2019 had me as captivated as any sporting event in my lifetime. He brought something to the game that nobody else could in the modern era.
Having said that, this is a birthday celebration. Everyone is always calling me a hater and diva for my takes, so here is an article where we can all hold hands and sing “Kumbaya.”
Who doesn’t like a good YouTube rabbit hole?
Who doesn’t like a good Tiger Woods YouTube rabbit hole?
I’ve been sucked into the vortex many times over the years so I feel experienced enough to write about my 10 favorite YouTube videos involving Tiger.
These Tiger videos inevitably lead to watching other Tiger videos. Trust me.
10. The 1994 U.S. Amateur
If you want to get slapped in the face by mid-’90s golf vibes, this is for you.
Weird shorts, terrible golf shirts, bucket hats everywhere. And a skinny Tiger coming from 6-down against Trip Kuehne to win the U.S. Amateur at a rugged-looking TPC Sawgrass.
This was before Tiger Mania took off. Three years later, he would be taking the sports world by storm.
9. PGA Tour Originals: Tiger Tales
A cool little short-form documentary the PGA Tour put together, “Tiger Tales” takes a quick run through Cat’s legacy as seen through the lens of everyone around him.
It features several animated skits of real-life stories, which are very interesting.
While they don’t offer quite the same rush as highlight reels, “Tiger Tales” is a fun look at what it meant to be in his aura.
8. Tiger Woods & Collin Morikawa’s Iron Striking Secrets
There is a ton of instructional content involving Tiger, much of it from TaylorMade.
You can also go back and find clinics Tiger put on back in the late ’90s and early ’00s.
One of my favorite instructional videos of his is when Tiger and Collin Morikawa walk viewers through shaping shots with irons. It’s golf nerd content I could get lost in all day.
Can I take any of their advice into my own game? Not at all. But it’s nice to think it’s possible.
7. Tiger Woods’ best shots 1996-2019 (excluding majors)
I guess it’s a good sign when you have a 24-minute highlight reel of insane shots—and they don’t even include any from your 15 major victories.
There are some classics in this highlight package but the true sickos among us appreciate all of the deep cuts from the late ’90s and early ’00s. Even though I’ve seen this several times, I still forget about some of them until the rewatch.
6. Tiger Woods teaches me how to hit it Straight!
We’re going modern here with a recent Grant Horvat video where Tiger gives him a lesson on drivers and woods.
I’m a big Horvat fan so seeing him stripe a shot in front of Woods and then get coached up is very satisfying.
It’s also a phenomenal look into the mind of Tiger. His golf IQ is on a different planet.
5. Tiger Woods’ BEST season in golf: The full story
I’m so grateful the PGA Tour released this mini-documentary on Tiger’s famous 2000 season.
Obviously, you get a deeper look into all of the indelible moments of that historic year—the rout at Pebble, the runaway at St Andrews, the duel with Bob May at the PGA.
But what I really appreciate the most is all the backstory about his swing changes and how he decided to switch golf balls midway through the year.
It’s a complete look at why he was so dominant. Tiger just had a relentless pursuit of perfection, which this doc puts into a neat package.
4. Tiger Woods’ best stingers on the PGA TOUR
I can’t be the only one who fell in love with golf partly because of Tiger’s ability to hit the stinger.
If a golf shot can be sexual, it’s the Tiger stinger. I’m not sure he ever missed a fairway when he used it. Hard for a shot to go offline when it’s only getting 20 or 30 feet off the ground and the greatest player in the game’s history is compressing it.
You could honestly give me an hour-long compilation of Tiger stingers and I would watch it all the way through.
3. 1997 Masters Tournament Final Round Broadcast
This is the tournament that announced Tiger as a dominant force.
I’m not sure there is anything more nostalgic for me in golf than watching late ’90s Tiger rip apart Augusta National while playing a game nobody else in the field could recognize.
I love the aesthetic of the Masters during this time period. The TV broadcast was bare bones in the best way possible. The course isn’t as flashy and more closely resembles the original layout. The equipment feels like it was from six decades ago instead of three decades ago.
I’ll go back and watch this final round at least once per year.
2. The entire 2008 U.S. Open
This documentary of the 2008 U.S. Open is a great look at the stunning sequence of events that took place that week at Torrey Pines.
Perhaps my favorite golf tournament I’ve ever watched, the ’08 Open had everything you could ask for and a whole lot more.
Rocco Mediate nearly spoiled the story. Lee Westwood was tantalizingly close to the major he never won. And then there was Woods, putting on a show despite being severely injured.
How many jarring moments are there from this tournament? There were at least three on Saturday in what is among the most frenzied back nines of a third round in major championship history. Then there are a few more on Sunday, including the tournament-tying put on the 72nd hole.
The 18-hole playoff (which turned into 19 holes) was pure cinema.
1. The final round of the 2019 Masters
When the world gets me down and there is nowhere to turn, I pull up the final round of the 2019 Masters (it’s been viewed more than 11 million times on YouTube so I guess I’m not alone).
This is pure drama, entertainment and somehow nostalgic despite 2019 being just short of seven years ago. The pandemic must have added another decade emotionally.
Francesco Molinari was frustrating me early in this round. Eventually he came unglued, as did a few other contenders who found the water on the 12th hole.
Tiger meticulously charted his way around Augusta National with surgical precision. When it was all over, the emotions come pouring out of him. The few minutes after he won are among the greatest moments in sports TV history.
Every future rain delay in Masters history should lead to the 2019 Masters being re-shown. I’m not sure of much in this life but I’m sure of that.
What other Tiger videos do you love to watch? Let me know below in the comments.
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