ORLANDO, Fla. – Hello friends, and welcome to my favorite golf weekend of the year: the PNC Championship! I’ll be on site all weekend here at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club to tell you all about the best parent-child moments from this event. I drove from Palm Beach to Orlando on Friday morning and made it to the course just in time tigerthe second nine. This is the first year since Tiger and Charlie Woods played in separate pro-am sets, so while I didn’t see much father-son interaction, I know there will be plenty throughout the weekend. Team Woods will pair it up with Team Leonard on Saturday morning, and Tiger and Justin Leonard aren’t the only ones in that group who are used to playing together. Charlie Woods and Leonard’s son Luke are high school golf teammates.
The high school teammates are determined to reunite with their fathers.
Justin Leonard’s son Luke is excited to be paired with Tiger Woods’ son Charlie in the first round of the PNC Championship. pic.twitter.com/C1Hb99IY6K
Moments like these remind me how glad I am that I grew up in Rhode Island because there is no way I would have made a high school golf team in Florida. There is so much talent! OK, let’s get into it.
Tiger on the course
The best spot at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club (in my humble opinion) is between the 9th green and the 10th tee. There’s a small path for players, teams and media to cut through, and there’s always a wait on the tee box. While a backup on a tee box is often seen as a negative thing, it is one magnificent thing here at PNC Championship. When groups overlap, players and their families interact. Today, Petr Korda, Tiger and Charlie Woods were all near the same tee for a few minutes. This is also where the players are served lunch. Chicken tenders and fries are always a hot item here at the PNC Championship.
It was here that I met Tiger’s group and immediately noticed that he was the only person in his group who did not use a wheelchair. And trust me, I know Tiger fans can be accused of being over the top when it comes to talking about him, but he looked spectacular out there and I mean it. He was walking with purpose, and that purpose was to get to the next shot. If you’ve seen Tiger put it up over the past few years, he would sometimes start limping towards the end of the round and look like he was avoiding a false takedown. Not today, folks.
Tiger to Hero: I’m not ready for the tournament
Tiger today: walking all round, playing really good golf
Tiger has run a cart and let Charlie take the lead during the pro-ams at the last two PNC Championships. Today, he was hitting every shot, chatting as he made his way around the course and lingering on the greens to get in a few more shots as the rest of his group headed to the next tee.
And while I didn’t see Charlie hit a single shot today, it looks like his game is in great shape. He played a set ahead of Tiger on the back nine and Tiger was in full dad mode as he tried to catch a glimpse of how Charlie was playing from a hole back.
The funniest part of the day came at the end of the round, when a guy dressed as a candy cane finally got Tiger’s attention. Tiger thought it was funny and walked up to him to sign his suit.
It was the only autograph I saw Woods sign all afternoon, so there might be a lesson here about what it takes to get a signature from the 15-time major champion. I’ll let you decide if it’s worth it.
Tiger joke
Tiger’s smarts were on point Friday at the PNC Championship. He was in great spirits and my favorite moment of the day came when Tiger spotted John Daly and immediately made a joke. Woods told Daly he’d “meet him at the gym,” and after hugging, Daly explained that the two have different three-letter words: Tiger’s is “gym,” Daly’s is “bar.”
Whenever I see old friends reunite on the golf course, I like to take a look at Getty Images and find some throwback photos. I came across this one of Woods and Daly from the 1997 Memorial Tour.
Time flies!
Tiger also had fun during his post-round interview when he responded that his best year on Tour was 2000.
“I think in 2000 I was fine.” He won nine times that year, so I have to agree.
The tiger speaks for the media
Tiger said a lot Friday at the PNC Invitational, but there were two main themes. The first is how happy he is to spend this week with his son, and the second is that he wants Charlie to be himself and have his own life.
Tiger was also quick to point out that while Charlie has beaten him in a nine-hole match, that hasn’t happened in an 18-hole match. At least not yet.
“Charlie is Charlie… I just want him to be himself and have his own life.”
Tiger and Charlie will make it a fifth straight year at the PNC Championship on Saturday. 🐅 pic.twitter.com/dQ8GNNr7J5
When I think of the Masters, I usually think of spring. However, it turns out that vacations do pretty well at Augusta National, too. Just when I thought the Masters theme song couldn’t get any better, I heard the ringtone version of it and was immediately proven wrong. The local Augusta Bell Choir practiced the Masters theme song for weeks before this video and their hard work definitely paid off.
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Not only does this video get me excited for Christmas (which is quite an accomplishment considering I’ve been in Florida for two weeks and still think about its summer!), but it also has a handful of Easter eggs that I encourage you all to ask them.
