Golf

Tiger Woods: 20 incredible facts and achievements from golf's GOAT

Liam Williams Updated: 13 Dec 24 09:19

Battling through testing conditions and a number of physical impairments, Tiger Woods made the cut at the 2024 Masters, eclipsing Fred Couples and Gary Player (23 each) to make his 24th consecutive cut at Augusta.

Despite trailing Jack Nicklaus's 18 majors with 15, Woods is widely accepted to be the greatest golfer of all time.

Here are 20 reasons why:

Tiger Woods first broke 70 before turning 13

1. Woods first broke 80 at the age of 8. He broke 70 at the age of 12.

Tiger Woods has completed the Grand Slam three times

2. Only five golfers in history won the career Grand Slam of the Masters, US Open, The Open and PGA Championship. Tiger Woods – along with Jack Nicklaus – completed the Grand Slam three times.

Tiger Woods is the youngest player to complete the Grand Slam

3. Woods is also the youngest to have done it, having won all four majors before turning 25.

Tiger Woods has made the most consecutive cuts on the PGA TOUR

4. In Tiger Woods’ first 174 events as a professional, he withdrew from one event and missed the cut in the other. He made the cut in the other 172, and set a record for consecutive cuts made with 142. Xander Schauffele holds the current longest streak with 56*. Only two other players have made more than 100 consecutive cuts - Byron Nelson (113), whose streak ended in 1949, and Jack Nicklaus (105), whose streak ended in 1976.

*Correct as of 13th December 2024

Tiger Woods has won nearly a quarter of PGA TOUR events

5. Across a 26-year professional career, Woods has won nearly 25% of all PGA Tour events he’s entered.

Tiger Woods won six consecutive events between 1999 and 2000

6. From the end of 1999 to the start of 2000, Woods won six consecutive events, including two WGCs and the TOUR Championship. He was T2 in the following event.

Tiger Woods won seven consecutive events between 2006 and 2007

7. From 2006 to 2007, he won seven consecutive events, including two majors, two WGCs and a FedEx Cup event.

Tiger Woods won five consecutive events between 2007 and 2008

8. From 2007 to 2008, Woods won five consecutive events, including a FedEx Cup event, a WGC and the Tour Championship. Nobody else has won four straight events since the 1950s.

Tiger Woods won nearly half of all events between 2005 and 2009

9. Between 2005-2009, Woods won 31 events in 75 starts, including six majors. Only 14 other golfers in history have won 31 PGA TOUR events in their entire career.

Tiger Woods has been named PGA Player of the Year 11 times

10. Woods has won PGA Player of the Year a record 11 times. Tom Watson is next, with six.

Tiger Woods is the only player to win two or more majors in two straight years

11. Woods is the only player to have won more than one major in consecutive years. Jack Nicklaus won two majors in five years, but never consecutively.

Tiger Woods has the biggest margin of victory at the Masters, where he's the youngest winner

12. Woods’ first major came in 1997 at the Masters. He was the youngest player to win the tournament, and set records for the lowest score (-18) and the biggest margin of victory (12 strokes).

Tiger Woods was the first player to finish a US Open double digits under par

13. Three years later, Woods won his third major, the US Open, by 15 strokes with a score of -12. It was the first time a player had finished a US Open double digits under par.

Tiger Woods won the 2000 Open by a record eight strokes

14. A month later, he won The Open by eight strokes, also a tournament record. In doing so, he completed the Grand Slam in his 83rd professional start.