Eldrick "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an
American professional golfer whose achievements to
date rank him among the most successful golfers of
all time. Currently the World No. 1, Woods was the
highest paid professional athlete in 2006, having
earned an estimated $100 million from winnings and
endorsements. Golf Digest predicts Woods will become
the world's first billionaire athlete in 2010.
Woods has won 13 professional major golf
championships, the second-most of any male player,
and 64 PGA Tour events, tied for third all time. He
has more career major wins and career PGA Tour wins
than any other active golfer. He is the youngest
player to achieve the career Grand Slam, and the
youngest and fastest to win 50 tournaments on Tour.
Woods has held the number one position in the world
rankings for the most consecutive weeks and for the
greatest total number of weeks. He has been awarded
PGA Player of the Year a record nine times, the
Byron Nelson Award for lowest adjusted scoring
average a record eight times, and has tied Jack
Nicklaus's record of leading the money list in eight
different seasons. He has been named Associated
Press Male Athlete of the Year four times, a record
he shares with Lance Armstrong.
Woods, who is multiracial, is credited with
prompting a major surge of interest in the game of
golf. Woods doubled attendance and TV ratings, and
generated interest among a multicultural audience in
a game that used to be considered insular and
elitist.
