There was plenty of talk that Charlie Woods would be playing the same tees as John Daly at last year’s PNC Championship before the decision being corrected, but this time Tiger Woods’ son has indeed been moved back with some of the bigger hitters.
Woods Jnr will play from the 6,500+ yard tees at Orlando’s Ritz Carlton Golf Club this week, which are the same tees that the likes of John Daly, Nelly Korda, Vijay Singh and Retief Goosen will be hitting from.
The 14-year-old will likely be hitting the ball much further than last year and, although we have no data on his driving distance, we’d hazard a guess it’s somewhere between 250-270 yards considering John Daly has averaged 282 yards this year and Nelly Korda 269 yards.
“For the @PNCchampionship Charlie Woods will be moving back a tee from last year,” the Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
All of the male PGA Tour players will be off the backs this week, measuring over 7,100 yards, including Tiger Woods who makes his second appearance since undergoing ankle surgery in April.
Woods finished 18th in the four-day Hero World Challenge earlier this month, where he seemed very happy with how his body held up with the demand of 72-holes and walking – crucially this week he’ll be allowed a cart for the 36-hole event.
“I haven’t done it in a while, I haven’t done it with my ankle the way it is now and I was excited each and every day to kind of get through it and kind of start piecing rounds together again,” Woods said after the Hero World Challenge final round.
“I haven’t done this in a long time so it was fun to feel that again. Every day I got faster into the round. The first day took me a while to get a handle on it, second day was faster, today was right away.
“And that’s eventually, when I play on a regular basis, that’s normally how it is. It takes me usually during warmup before I get a feel for the round. To be honest, that first day took me a while.”
Team Woods make their fourth appearance at the PNC Championship, having finished T8th last year, 2nd in 2021 and 7th in 2020. Vijay and Qass Singh are this week’s defending champions.
Tiger Woods made his return to golf two weeks ago at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, and now he’s back to headline the PNC Championship at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando, Florida.
The 15-time major champion is playing in the 36-hole two-day scramble event with his son, Charlie.
In 2021, Team Woods finished runner-up to Vijay Singh and his son, Qass. And last year, even though Charlie was playing hurt, the Woods boys finished T-8 after rounds of 59-65.
A lot has changed about golf since Tiger Woods and his son, Charlie, started playing the PNC Championship three years ago. A lot has changed with them, too.
Woods — at the time, one year removed from his improbable 2019 Masters victory — had his car accident at the beginning of 2021 and has undergone multiple surgeries since then, only playing intermittently throughout. Charlie has changed the most, though. Gone is the child who hit it as far as he possibly could and talked trash to Justin Thomas.
“I can’t quite give him as much grief anymore because he’s close to beating me up,” said Thomas. “Yeah, it’s impressive from a golfer standpoint because he’s still, what, 14. He’s still a 14-year-old but maturing in the sense of his golf game, and he’s more willing to learn and he’s open to it at times, obviously.
“It’s cool. He won the state championship with the guys. That’s really cool, I think playing on the high school team has been very beneficial for him. And yeah, I’m just glad he keeps moving back tee markers. He’s leading the tournament in inches grown.”
“He’s one tee further back, so I guess he’s tee No. 2,” said Tiger. “He’s just one tee ahead of me, which is fine because he’s hitting it past me now. So we still have an advantage out there, but we both have to hit shots well at the same time.”
On Friday, Tiger said that he has enjoyed caddying for his son and also instructing him throughout. Giving him what shots to hit, how to hit them and what he’s thinking in certain situations.
“[The biggest change in his game from last year is] understanding how to hit shots,” said Tiger. “But I think his speed has gone dramatically up since last year. But I think that more than anything, it’s just the fact that he’s grown so fast. The aches and pains of growing, just teenage life.”
Tiger did give one eye-opening quote about how good Charlie’s swing is and how much speed he has off the tee, while also noting that he never has to push him because of how self-motivated his son is to get better.
“I sort of didn’t have the speed that he has at that age, but also, I didn’t have the equipment, either,” said Tiger. “The equipment is so different. We were just transitioning out of persimmon, so it’s a different era, but also, the different golf ball, too. We were able to do so much more with the golf ball. I would hit different shots and do more things with the golf ball because it just moved a lot more.”
Like father, like son 🏌️♂️🐅
Tiger & Charlie are back for their fourth @PNCchampionship.@PGATOUR pic.twitter.com/cFemHFjk9k
— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) December 15, 2023
Nobody knows how things will progress. Golf is a fickle and funny game. But Charlie’s progress is clearly extraordinary and that will almost certainly be on display when Tiger and Charlie tee it up alongside Thomas and his dad, Mike, on Saturday morning.
“He’s still growing,” said Tiger. You can see how much he’s grown from last year. It’s amazing how much he has grown, has changed, and it’s a moving target with him, right. He’s grown somewhere near 4 inches this year, so his swing has changed, it’s evolved, clubs have evolved. And we kept trying to adjust things, and it’s been a lot of fun. But it’s also challenging for him because each and every couple weeks, things change. He’s growing so fast.”
ORLANDO – Tiger Woods, the father, isn’t that different from you or me. The 15-time major champ and father of two doesn’t like when son, Charlie, stares at his phone all the time.
“Put your phone away and just look around. That’s one of the things that I think all parents struggle with is most kids don’t look up anymore. Everyone is looking down,” he said when asked to name a pet peeve or something Charlie does that gets under his skin. “Look around you, the world is so beautiful around you, just look up. But everyone is staring into a screen, and that’s how people view life. It drives me nuts at times because he’s always looking down and there’s so many things around you that are so beautiful at the same time.”
Very relatable.
Watching Tiger in dad mode has made Tiger more relatable than ever. Golf fans have watched Charlie, 14, grow up in front of our eyes at the PNC Championship, a 36-hole two-person scramble that begins on Saturday at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. And grow he has the last four years.
“You can see how much he’s grown from last year. It’s amazing how much he has grown, has changed, and it’s a moving target with him, right? He’s grown somewhere near four inches this year, so his swing has changed, it’s evolved, clubs have evolved,” Tiger said. “And we kept trying to adjust things, and it’s been a lot of fun. But it’s also challenging for him because each and every couple weeks, things change. He just has – he’s growing so fast.”
“He’s leading the tournament in inches grown,” Justin Thomas said. “I can’t quite give him as much grief anymore because he’s close to beating me up.”
Tiger noted that Charlie is hitting it past him now, and just to keep things fair in this 36-hole competition, he’s playing one set back this year at a length of 6,576 yards.
Imagine trying to grow up as the son of one of, if not, the best ever to play a sport. And yet Charlie has fallen hard for golf and seems to be able to handle all of the inevitable comparisons. Imagine being able to learn the game from Tiger. Well, Charlie still has some mixed feelings about that. When Will McGee, the 12-year-old son of Annika Sorenstam, asked him if he listens to his dad’s tips, Charlie said, “It doesn’t happen very often. I mean, when I get desperate, yeah.
“Sometimes he doesn’t see it the way I saw it, which is fun, but I think it’s the understanding of how to hit the proper shot at the proper time. And that’s what all kids have to learn is when do I hit a certain shot at the right time, or how do I take stuff off a shot, how do I hit it a little bit harder, what do I need to do.
“You can do that at home all you want, but under tournament conditions, it’s just so different. And being able to share that with him, share my experiences with him in game-time mode, I think that it was great for both of us because I think we both are able to learn from it and grow from it. I think I learned to be a better teacher with it, and I think that he became a better player because of it.”
Imagine there being a blessing in disguise from Tiger’s accident. His injuries have prevented him from practicing as much as he’d like with Charlie but on the bright side he said he has been home more and able to watch Charlie’s high school matches and caddie for him at junior tournaments, which he might not otherwise have been able to do. This week is special for Team Woods to test their games together under tournament conditions.
“We push each other, which is great,” Tiger said. “And the needle is always out. If you’re going to be able to mouth off and give the jabs, then you have to be able to take it. That’s been a lot of fun for both of us.”
Imagine being able to get a wedge lesson from the legend Lee Trevino. After the pro-am, Charlie hit the range and when Tiger joined him, they made sure to visit with Trevino, who was digging it out of the dirt at age 84 at the far end of the range. They hugged, laughed, and traded stories and tips.
Imagine if Tiger and Charlie were to win the PNC Championship this week. JT has and he took a guess where it would rank for Tiger. “It would be No. 1 for special,” he said.
“Winning majors is unbelievable, and how he’s won his majors, but seeing how much he cares about Charlie and having Sam out here and him doing that together with Charlie and as he’s watched him grow up, it would be a very, very different kind of win that doesn’t maybe come with the record books and history and whatnot,” Thomas added. “I know it would suck for us because they would really rub that in our face.”
FLORIDA — His father was one of the most decorated teenage golfers to play the game. Now, Charlie Woods is adding to his own junior trophy cabinet.
The 14-year-old was part of the Benjamin School boys team that clinched the Florida High School Athletic Association Class A state championship on Wednesday, helping secure a fourth title for the Palm Beach school.
Freshman Woods carded rounds of 78 and 76 at Mission Inn Resort and Club in Howey-In-The-Hills, Florida, the fourth-best score of his five-strong team, all while his father Tiger, clad in black, watched on.
He finished tied-26th in the individual rankings as the Benjamin School Buccaneers edged a one-shot victory.
The 47-year-old Woods had caddied for his son when he triumphed at his Junior National Golf Championship qualifier in Orlando in September but had to settle for a spectator’s view this time around.
The 15-time major winner never lifted a state championship, though there is a caveat to his son’s bragging rights – his father never actually had the opportunity to win one. The California Interscholastic Federation did not stage the competition during Woods’ spell at Western High School in Anaheim, California.
Not that it put much of a dent in his résumé. As a 15-year-old student at the school in 1991, Woods became the then-youngest US Junior Amateur champion and would go on to three-peat in the event.
Within a year of turning professional in August 1996, he had won three PGA Tour events, become the youngest winner of The Masters at 21 and the fastest player to reach No. 1 in the world after turning pro.
Today, Woods sits at World No. 1307, a third-round withdrawal from The Masters in April being his last competitive appearance, and the most recent of the sporadic few he has made since suffering severe leg injuries in a serious car crash in 2021.
However, he is set to play in The TGL in January, a televised indoor golf league organized by TMRW Sports, a company Woods co-founded alongside Rory McIlroy.
Charlie Woods has added to his family’s list of achievements in the world of golf by helping his team to a high school state title.
A state championship is one of the few prizes his father, Tiger, has not claimed during his golf career, but 14-year-old Charlie was on the victorious team as The Benjamin School’s boys team captured the FHSAA Class A state championship on Wednesday. Charlie shot 78 and 76 in his two rounds at Mission Inn Resort in Florida. He finished 26th in the individual standings as his five-man team won their fourth state title.
Tiger Woods has an excuse for not winning a state title in high school: the California Interscholastic Federation did not have a championship while he was a student. He did, however, win the US Junior Amateur as a 15-year-old, a record at the time.
Charlie and Tiger have played together in the PNC Championship, a tournament in which major winners compete alongside family members. They finished seventh in their debut at the tournament in 2020.
“I don’t think words can describe it,” the 15-times major champion said of competing alongside his son. “Just the fact that we were able to have this experience together, Charlie and I, it’s memories for a lifetime.”
Tiger has also advised his son to model his game on someone outside the family.
“[I told him] don’t copy my swing. Copy Rory [McIlroy]’s,” Woods said on NBC last year. “That’s one of the things my dad instilled in me, is that you should be able to balance and hold your finish until the ball rolls and stops. You can swing as hard as you want, but you need to have balance.”
Charlie’s golf handicap is unknown but is it believed to be around around scratch.
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HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla. (AP) — Tiger Woods’ 14-year-old son has accomplished something his dad never did: played on a golf team that won a high school state championship.
Charlie Woods and his team from The Benjamin School edged First Academy by one shot in the two-day Florida High School Athletic Association championship, which concluded Wednesday.
With his father looking on, Charlie Woods shot 78-76 for a 154 total to finish in a tie for 26th. His team’s total was 602, led by Jake Valentine, who finished in a tie for eighth at 148. It was Valentine’s birdie on the 17th hole that put The Benjamin School in front, and he closed with a clinching par.
Alexander Weinberg of Pine Crest won boys’ individual honors with a 143, and Florida Atlantic won the girls’ division by seven shots over First Academy. Mi Li of First Academy won the girls’ individual title with a 136 total.
Tiger Woods will play the Hero World Challenge later this month, his first PGA TOUR start since undergoing ankle surgery in the spring.
The 82-time TOUR winner announced his commitment Saturday on Instagram. The Hero World Challenge will be contested Nov. 30-Dec. 3 at Albany, Bahamas.
Woods has held a spot for himself at the Hero World Challenge in the past. The initial field release included only 19 players, leading to speculation that the last spot could again be earmarked for Woods if his recovery progressed.
It appears that was the plan. Momentum was building for Woods’ return. He was on-site pre-tournament at the World Wide Technology Championship in Mexico, contested at the Woods-designed El Cardonal at Diamante. While in Mexico, Woods visited with contemporaries including Stewart Cink – who revealed to Golf Channel’s George Savaricas that Woods said he had returned to practice, opining that Woods was in “go mode.” A few days later, Woods walked and caddied 54 holes for son Charlie at the Notah Begay III Junior Golf National Championship.
Woods hasn’t competed since undergoing ankle surgery in late April, shortly after withdrawing from the Masters during the third round due to plantar fasciitis. The 15-time major winner was seen chipping at Liberty National in September, and a video was captured of Woods hitting balls at The Hay, the short course Woods designed at Pebble Beach, during the TGR Jr. Invitational in October.
Woods has made five TOUR starts since a 2021 car accident in which he suffered multiple breaks in his right tibia and fibula and damaged his feet. He has made the cut four times but completed 72 holes just twice; walking has proven understandably difficult, particularly on uneven terrain. Woods has shown improvement in recent weeks and recently told the Associated Press, “my ankle is fine,” adding “that pain is completely gone. It’s the other areas that have been compensated for.”
Woods has not yet committed to play the PNC Championship, Dec. 14-17, with Charlie. Tiger and Charlie Woods have paired in the last three editions of the PNC Championship, a two-player best-ball event that allows competitors to use carts. Team Woods finished seventh in 2020, second in 2021 and eighth in 2022.
The PNC Championship appeared to be a natural, easy-going place to make his return, given the ability to use a cart and its scramble format. Instead, Woods opted to throw himself right back into PGA TOUR competition against an elite field.
Lucas Glover and Justin Rose were also announced as Hero World Challenge exemptions on Saturday, replacing Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.
It seems an impossible task following in the footsteps of Tiger Woods, but his son Charlie has already done something his father never did by winning a high school State Championship title.
With Tiger watching on in the crowd, Charlie Woods, a 14-year-old freshman at The Benjamin School in North Palm Beach, shot 78 and 76 as his team won the Florida High School Athletic Association Class A state championship at Mission Inn Resort.
Woods finished 26th overall and was fourth of the five golfers on his team, but nonetheless the most talked about teenager in golf still contributed to his first State Championship title.
His father may have 15 Major titles and be one of the greatest golfers ever to swing a club, but Tiger never won a State Championship at high school, and from what we’ve seen of their relationship Charlie will no doubt been keen to point that out.
Dressed all in black, Tiger was keeping a low profile as he watched his son in action during the State Championship – just appearing in the background of pictures as the team celebrated their victory.
Tiger made a more high-profile appearance in Charlie’s previous even as he caddied for his son in the Notah Begay III Junior Golf National Championship, where he finished T17.
Tiger and Charlie have also played together at the PNC Championship – and that event in December could be part of his latest comeback from injury, but he could also be back later this month in the Hero World Challenge event he hosts in the Bahamas.
The State Championship though was all about Charlie, who is already the most talked-about teenager in the sport and interest in his development will only increase as he gets older.
Trying to follow in Tiger’s tracks looks an impossible task, but while he may never get near to his dad’s 82 PGA Tour titles or 15 Major wins, at least the teenager has achieved something his father never did.
Charlie Woods is following in the footsteps of his father and golf legend Tiger Woods. Currently participating at the Notah Begay III Junior Golf Championship at the Koasati Pines at Coushatta, Charlie Woods’ performance has been nothing short of impressive so far.
With dad Tiger Woods on the bag for him this weekend, Charlie has received the extra support and confidence that he needs to play well. This was evident as he took a confident shot off the first tee at the short par 4. As the announcer took Charlie’s name, he stepped up to the tee and hit the ball rather well.
His father provided him with words of encouragement as they walked down the course, saying,
“Good one Char.”
This has been Tiger Woods’ first appearance in a very long time, especially since his surgery in April. Now caddying for his son, he was seen walking without a limp. This also brought about speculation among golf fans about whether Woods might be making a comeback soon.
Tiger Woods could make a comeback alongside Charlie Woods at the PNC Championship
Along with his recent caddying expedition, Woods was also seen back on course, hitting some balls. Needless to say, fans are quite excited to see him back playing golf once again. Woods will most likely make his comeback at the Hero World Challenge, or alongside Charlie Woods at the PNC Championship.
Stewart Cink of Golf Channel also interviewed Woods at the WWT Championship, which was played on a course that was designed by him. Speaking about the interview, Cink said:
“You don’t always get a whole lot out of Tiger Woods but he said that he is starting practising, which I think is a great sign. I don’t know what he’s practicing for, but he said he’s started practising. He’s in go mode for something.”
Cink said that all of Woods’ fans are hoping that he feels better and that he is going in the right direction at the moment. When Woods will truly make a comeback has not been confirmed yet, and for now, he remains on the bag of his son Charlie Woods.
