Tiger Woods was left red-faced by an “embarrassing” club selection blunder during his Jupiter Links’ 10-3 TGL loss to New York Golf Club.
TGL Golf League | Watch LIVE & exclusive on FOX SPORTS, available on Kayo. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited time offer.
On the 13th hole of the 15-hole match, Woods pumped his drive straight up the middle, and over the daunting gap on the risk versus reward par 4 called Temple, and had to quickly head to his bag to grab a club for his second shot.
He was told he had 99 yards left to the pin, so the 15-time major winner grabbed a wedge and it hit almost flush on the number, but was left gob smacked as the simulator showed his ball pulling up well short of the green.
His teammate Tom Kim was in stitches, while his opponents Cameron Young, Matt Fitzpatrick and Rickie Fowler were in disbelief.
This was not a technology error like amateurs at a local golf simulator centre would claim when they don’t make clean contact, this was a communication error, Woods had 199 yards left.
“I heard 99 yards so I went out there and hit it 100 yards. One of the most embarrassing moments in my golfing career just happened,” Woods said on the broadcast.
“I just screwed up. That was embarrassing.”
Replays confirmed that Woods was told it was 99 yards, not 199 yards, and continually apologised to teammates Kim and Kevin Kisner for the remainder of the night.
Fowler meanwhile thought that Woods should be thankful his good friend Justin Thomas was not present for the mistake, with the New York team letting him off lightly.
“I think he should be glad that JT wasn’t here because he’d have been all over him,” Fowler said.
“I’m sure that’ll be used (to poke fun at him). Nothing’s off limits.”
Woods was also the butt of a joke by Kim earlier in the night.
The 22-year-old Korean star was trying his best to get Jupiter Links back into the contest as Woods and Kisner struggled to get any rhythm going.
On the microphone, Kim was heard summing it up bluntly.
“My old guys aren’t playing very well,” he said with a chuckle.
The one-sided contest stood in stark contrast to yesterday’s epic triple-header where every match came down to the final hole.
It was also an emotional night for Woods as he stepped out for the first time since his mother Kultida passed away earlier this month.
He walked onto the SoFi Centre with son Charlie by his side, and before the match begun, the 49-year-old shared that he was still grieving, and TGL will forever hold a special place for him as Kultida was present for his previous match.
“It’s a process,” Woods told ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt. “This was the last time she ever watched me play. It’s a bit emotional coming in here tonight.”
Earlier in the day, social media was a buzz with speculation that US President Donald Trump would attend the match in Florida amid his involvement in the PGA Tour’s negotiations with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to reach a merger between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.
But Trump was a no show, although Woods confirmed during the Genesis Invitational on Sunday that he will be involved in a second meeting with Trump after PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and Australian Adam Scott, who is a player director, recently attended the White House.
Discussion about this post