Tiger Woods has told his son, Charlie, he will no longer be allowed to tee off from the members tees at the Masters after confessing the 15-year-old now hits the ball longer than him.
Charlie is hoping to emulate his dad’s career and play golf for a living and has already competed in a PGA qualifier. And in fact his progression is so far along that he’s now out-driving his dad.
Woods, one of the most competitive sportsmen in history, is reluctant to let his son get an easy ride and has now implemented a strict rule for when they next play at Augusta National, home of the Masters.
“We haven’t played in a couple years now. I came up here last weekend,” replied Woods when asked if he had played the course recently with Charlie. “He wanted to be at home. So I came up here, and got a chance to play with the chairman and Rob and JT, and we had just an absolute blast.
“I would like to, obviously, play a little bit more up here with him and to share the experiences. Especially now that he’s got a little bit longer so he hits it past me. So I think that the days of playing from the members tees are over. He’s got to come back there with us.”
Charlie missed out on the chance to play in his first PGA Tour event after recording a disastrous 16-over round at Lost Lake. The teenager had a nightmare on the par-four seventh in particular, scoring a 12.
But the teenager enjoyed happier times more recently when dad Tiger and mum Elin Nordegren celebrated his state championship in Florida. Charlie received a ring and a medal after The Benjamin School won the Class 1A state golf championship.
Tiger caddied for Charlie at the PNC Championship pro-am in December at the Ritz-Carlton golf course and praised his son’s game then. “His speed has gone dramatically up this year,” he said.
On passing on advice and his son leaning on Tiger for tips, he added: “I enjoyed caddying for him and being there with him, just to talk through shots with him and have him understand what I would see or … the thought process I would have going through. He would bounce things off of me, and (I would) give him my take on certain things.”
Tiger will be playing for his sixth green jacket when he tees off on Thursday. It will only be his second event of the year after withdrawing from The Genesis Invitation in February. The 48-year-old is still making his way back to full fitness after undergoing ankle fusion surgery last year.
