Arguably the greatest athlete to have held the Golf stick and walked into a Golf course, Tiger Woods celebrates his 44th birthday on December 30, 2019 (Monday). In a professional Golf career spanning over 20 years, Woods has shattered numerous records and created his own. Woods turned professional in 1996 when he was 20-year-old and had already swept aside the junior, college and amateur golf courses. Within a year of turning pro, Tiger Woods became World No 1 in the rankings. By the time he completed a year in professional golf circuit, Tiger Woods had already sealed his first-ever major title – the 1997 masters. This was in addition to him winning three PGA Tours in his very first year as a pro. On his 44th birthday, take a look at some lesser-known facts about Tiger Woods. Year Ender 2019 Golf Special: Tiger Woods Roars Back Into Spotlight.

Woods was introduced to golf by his father Earl Woods, who served in the military for the United States of America. His father was a single-digit handicap amateur golfer and encouraged Tiger to take up Golf. At 3 years of age, Tiger nine holes at a Golf course and by 13 he had already played at his first major junior national tournament. At 15, Tiger became the youngest U.S. Junior Amateur champion – a record he held until 2010 – and was named Southern California Amateur Player of the Year bursting into the limelight.

  • Tiger Woods was born to Earl and Kutilda "Tida" Woods in Cypress, California on December 30, 1975

  • His real name is Eldrick Tont Woods, which is a mix of a traditional Thai name and his father and mother's initials

  • Woods was named "Tiger" after his a Vietnamese soldier and father’s friend Vuong Dang Phong also called Tiger

  • At 24 years of age, Tiger Woods was the youngest golfer to win the career grand slam

  • Tiger Woods is also the youngest golfer ever to hold the no 1 spot and his 281-week streak as world no 1 is also the longest in golf history

  • Woods has spent a total of 683 weeks as world no 1 which is the longest amount of time a golfer had spent at the top in official world golf ranking history

  • On May 2019, Tiger Woods was honoured with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, United States' highest civil honour 

    After dominating the Golf world for over a decade early into his pro career, Tiger Woods slid down the rankings as injuries and personal problems, including the publicly maligned split with his wife, took over. But Tiger bounced back with the season-ending PGA Tour championship in 2018 and followed it with his first Masters in 2019. The major championship win, his 15th overall, made Tiger the second oldest golfer ever to win the masters. He also won Zozo Championship in October which is the first of the 2020 PGA Tour event and looks set for another glorious run in a course he had made his own.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 30, 2019 09:29 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).