Tragic Details Of Tiger Woods' Son Charlie

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It's not easy being the son of one of the greatest golfers of all time, nonetheless, Tiger Woods' son Charlie Woods has still decided to follow in his father's footsteps into the world of professional golf. But like father, like son, because for as much success as the young golfer has had, he has also had his fair share of tragedy. Beginning with how he got his name, Charlie has lived with the weight of expectations. That's because his namesake is Charlie Sifford, the man who fought back against the "Caucasian only" rule that the PGA had up until 1961, and a man who became friends with Tiger's father, who in turn passed on the love of the game to Tiger himself — which came full circle with the birth of Charlie. Woods said in a statement to the AP after Sifford died in 2015, "It's not an exaggeration to say that without Charlie, and the other pioneers who fought to play, I may not be playing golf" (via ESPN).

It adds to the burden that comes with being the son of a legend, but Charlie has even more pressure on his shoulders, even if it's for a good outcome. After his father was badly injured in a car accident in 2021, Tiger slowly got back to health by rehabilitating his body and relying on Charlie and his sister Sam Woods to guide his recovery. A source told People that Tiger "lives for" his kids and that "being a dad has helped him stay focused on his recovery." It's a sweet sentiment, but we can't help but imagine that being the reason for your famous father to get back to golf can't help but feel like a panic attack-inducing amount of pressure.

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Expectations have been sky-high for Charlie Woods, and unfortunately, his performance shows that he still has a ways to go. In April, per ESPN, Charlie failed to advance to a U.S. Open qualifier after finishing 61st amongst 74 other golfers. The pressure was on for the 15-year-old to beat his father's record of winning his first Masters Tournament at the age of 21, though the poor finish made many wonder if Charlie would ever measure up. 

Then, after qualifying for his first USGA championship in June, Charlie had an underwhelming performance again as he tried to match his father's record of winning his first U.S. Junior Amateur at the age of 15. Per the Associated Press (via ESPN), the win didn't materialize, with Charlie leaving the tournament after another disappointingly low placing. Golf is hard enough, but it must be impossible to shut out the comparisons to his father's accomplishments.

As if Charlie didn't have enough distractions, The Palm Beach Post reported that during a pre-qualifying round for the Cognizant Classic at Lost Lake Golf Club in Palm Beaches, fans at the tournament were ditching golf decorum and harassing Charlie as he walked the course. Charlie's mom, Elin Nordegren, watched as spectators swarmed her son in the absence of rope barriers, even reportedly walking right alongside a frustrated Charlie as they asked him to sign books and squabbled with course officials who asked fans to move back. One disgruntled fan even asked an official, "Who are you? The fire marshal?" At least Tiger wasn't there to cause even more of a fan frenzy, but it's an ugly side of fandom and a tragic hurdle for the son of everyone's golf hero to have to endure in order to pursue his passion.

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Off of the golf course, Charlie Woods lives with the fact that the same year he was born, his father was having an affair with another woman. And even though Charlie was only one at the time, Nicki Swift spoke to an expert in family law, Allan Mayaekfsy of the law firm Aronson Mayefsky & Sloan, to get his opinion on Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren's messy divorce and whether there could be any lasting impact on their kids. He said, "They may have been too young to know or understand what was going on," but added, "The effect on the children of public divorces and revelations of infidelity and misconduct should always be considered by parents when going through obviously difficult and highly emotional circumstances."

Despite it all, it appears that Charlie has two parents who have put their past issues behind them, with Us Weekly reporting that Tiger and Nordegren have found a way to successfully co-parent their two kids. It's always nice when something good can be gotten from tragedy, and with Charlie having plenty, it's also nice to know that he and his dad will be hitting the links together. According to Golf Digest, Charlie and his father have been playing in the parent-child PNC golf tournament for years, and this year will be no exception, with the two set to play together in December. Hopefully, the two Woods will share a win instead of having their careers compared again.