ORLANDO – Matt Kuchar stood on the first tee before the final round of the 2021 PNC Championship and beamed with joy as his 15-year-old son Cameron tried to keep from jumping out of his skin at being paired with Tiger Woods and son Charlie.
“My son may be the last of his generation, of his age, to play alongside Tiger Woods,” Kuchar said. “I don’t know many kids younger than 15 that will get to play with Tiger in a competition. It’s pretty cool.”
One year later, Kuchar still marvels at the experience and the broader implications of quality family time.
“Watching Charlie get into the game makes Tiger just look that much more human,” he said. “Seeing the dad side, the pride of watching his son play and play well. Everyone watching at home can relate.”
When Tiger was running roughshod over the competition, capturing 15 majors and 82 PGA Tours titles and owning the No. 1 ranking seemingly in perpetuity, he never really let us in. He was loved and respected for his otherworldly abilities but never beloved in the way that Arnold Palmer was forever approachable. Tiger always kept everyone at arms-length. That changed as he mounted his comeback from back trouble and got more involved in the team room in international team competitions and forged relationships with the likes of Justin Thomas and Rory McIlroy. No doubt, Tiger has been humbled, but nothing has humanized Tiger more than simply seeing him be a dad at the PNC Championship.
“It’s the third straight year he’s played (the PNC). Can you name any other tournament that that’s the case? I don’t know if there is one that he’s played in the last three straight years?” Stewart Cink said. “I mean that says a lot about what this tournament means to all of us playing; that Tiger Woods would play here three consecutive years considering what he’s gone through.”
Charlie Woods and Tiger Woods of the United States look on during the pro-am prior to the PNC Championship at Ritz-Carlton Golf Club on December 16, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
All eyes again return to Tiger and Charlie this week at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club for the two-day 36-hole team event that uses a two-person Scramble format.
“The last couple years have been magical. And to be able to do it again, we’re looking forward to it,” Tiger said.
The pent-up demand to see Tiger is evident in a tournament sell out. Grown men dressed in their red golf shirts and black pants…
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