Inside how the Hero World Challenge funds Tiger’s mission to help kids

NASSAU, Bahamas – When Tiger Woods was a kid, his parents instilled a core principle in his life: to make an impact in one person’s life every day.

“At TGR Foundation, we are doing just that, making a meaningful impact on the lives of youth one day at a time,” Woods said.

Founded in 1996 by Tiger, TGR Foundation’s mission is to empower students to pursue their passions through education. Its signature programs serve students from under-resourced communities, providing access to education and opportunities to prepare for their futures. But to continue to make a positive impact in the lives of youth and meet the demands of evermore young people in this day and age requires a hefty budget and that’s where events such as the Hero World Challenge become critical.

The Hero World Challenge was founded by Tiger and his father Earl in January 2000 and has been played annually with Tiger as host. The Foundation and World Challenge have enjoyed paralleled success over the past 25 years.

“Without having tournaments and special events and players play, we wouldn’t be able to serve as many kids and have as big an impact as we’ve had over the years,” said Tiger, reflecting on the 25^th playing of the Hero World Challenge, TGR Foundation’s longest running event to raise funds, and what has grown out of it. “These are all events that have allowed us as a foundation to have an impact not just in Southern California but in the areas where we played those events.”

As the Hero World Challenge has grown in prestige, TGR Foundation has expanded its impact. In 2001, Tiger made the important decision to focus his work on providing access to education and to create a “safe space where kids can learn, grow and chase after their dreams.” From that direction came the TGR Learning Lab in Anaheim, CA along with the Earl Woods Scholar Program, both launching in 2006. [There are 329 first-generation college students who have participated in the program, achieving a 98 percent graduation rate, among the highest scholarship graduation rates in the country, and the flagship TGR Learning Lab has supported more than 195,000 students from Southern California.]

The flagship TGR Learning Center in Anaheim opened in 2006. (Courtesy TGR Foundation)

Event revenue for non-profits is incredibly important because they tend to be unrestricted dollars. TGR Foundation also hosts the PGA Tour’s Genesis Invitational and other golf-related events such as the TGR Junior…