Before they turned pro: Tiger Woods
14 Apr 2019
by Sam Dostaler of AmateurGolf.com
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Tiger Woods had has signature fist pump even as an amateur
(USGA Photo)
This story originally was published in December 2016 but has been edited to reflect recent results
Of course we know all about
what Tiger Woods has done as a professional, 81
PGA Tour wins and now 15 Major Championships. It has
been well documented and you are reminded about it
every time you watch Woods compete. However,
what can be lost sometimes is the success Woods
had as an amateur.
Most golf nuts know that he won three
consecutive U.S. Amateur's from 1994-1996 but the
success, as you can imagine with Tiger Woods, goes
deeper than that. However, before we move onto
those triumphs let's talk briefly about the U.S.
Amateur.
The first victory in 1994 came at TPC Sawgrass
over Trip Kuehne as Woods overcame a six-hole
deficit in the match, his second win was over Buddy
Marucci at Newport Country Club and he picked up
his third straight title in a 38 hole thriller against
Steve Scott at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club.
In the 1996 title tilt, Woods once again showed
his patented flair for the dramatics, coming back
from 2 down with three holes to play. His win in
1996 capped his U.S. Amateur career with 18
straight match play victories.
Woods, with his three U.S. Amateur wins is third
all-time on the events win list behind the great
Bobby Jones (5) and Jerome Travers (4).
Believe it or not, Woods began his success in
USGA events (a success that would carry over to his
professional career) three years before his first U.S.
Amateur title. In 1991, Woods won the U.S. Junior
Amateur for the first of his three consecutive
championships. As a result, when you combine the
U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Amateur titles, Woods
won USGA events in a remarkable six straights
years.
TIGER WOODS' AMATEUR VICTORIES
|
YEAR | WIN(S)
|
| 1984 | 10-and-
under Junior World Golf Championships Boys |
|
| 1985 | 10-and-
under Junior World Golf Championships Boys |
|
| 1988 | Boy's 11-12
Junior World Golf Championships | |
| 1989 | Boy's 13-14 Junior World
Golf Championships | |
| 1990 | Boy's 13-14 Junior World
Golf Championships, Insurance Youth Golf
Classic | |
| 1991 |
U.S. Junior Amateur, Boys 15–17 Junior World
Golf Championships, Orange Bowl International
Junior | |
| 1992 |
U.S. Junior Amateur, Insurance Youth Golf
Classic | |
| 1993 |
U.S. Junior Amateur | |
| 1994 | U.S. Amateur, Western
Amateur, Pacific Northwest Amateur | |
| 1995 | U.S. Amateur,
College All-America Golf Classic | |
| 1996 | U.S. Amateur | |
| Stanford (1994-1996) |
William Tucker Invitational, Jerry Pate
Invitational, Stanford Invitational, John Burns
Invitational, Southwestern Intercollegiate, Tri-Match,
The Brawl, Cougar Classic, PAC-10 Championship,
NCAA West Regional, NCAA Championship |
|
Following his junior career Woods enrolled in
Stanford and to nobodies surprise the wins kept
piling up. Woods won his first tournament as a
freshman in the fall of 1994, the William H. Tucker
Invitational. The Stanford prodigy would go onto win
a Stanford record eleven-times and his victories
included the 1996 NCAA Division I Championship,
NCAA West Regional and Pac-10 Championship.
During his time at Stanford, Woods was a two-
time All-American, a two-time Pac-10 first teamer
and Player of the Year while he was also named the
1996 Jack Nicklaus Player of the Year.
Throughout his amateur years, Woods played in
16 professional events, making the cut seven times.
His first appearance was at the 1992 Nissan Los
Angeles Open and his final was the 1996 British
Open Championship where won the Silver Medal and
finished tied for 22nd.
Of the 16 events, six were majors -- the
Masters, U.S. Open and British Open twice each--
and Woods made the cut on four occasions.
Tiger Woods made his professional debut on
August 29, 2016 at the Greater Milwaukee Open.
About 'Before they turned pro'
The goal of the 'When They Were an Amateur'
is to take a look at back at the amateur career's of
some of the past and present stars of professional
golf.