BEVERLY HILLS, March 01, (THEWILL) –Â For Tiger Woods, witnessing such an outpouring of love on Sunday proved an emotional and moving experience for him as many of his peers donned his trademark Red and Black look for the final round of the Championship.
Through his official Twitter account, the 45-year-old said the tribute was “touching” and that his fellow golfers and fans “are truly helping me get through this tough time.”
@TigerWoods
“It is hard to explain how touching today was when I turned on the tv and saw all the red shirts. To every golfer and every fan, you are truly helping me get through this tough time.”
At the World Golf Championships (WGC) Workday Championship on Sunday, previous major winners Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Patrick Reed led a heart-warming tribute to injured icon Tiger Woods by wearing his trademark red shirt and black pants ensemble for the final round.
One of the 15-time major champion’s most recognised looks is wearing a red shirt and black pants on the last day of a tournament and it had become a signature appearance. Among golfers who used the ensemble to honour the golf legend were Justin Thomas and Tony Finau.
The remarkable gesture was so significant that the official Twitter account of the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour shared this important stat online: @PGATOUR
“The first time @McIlroyRory has worn red and black in his career. đź”´âš«”
Woods sustained severe leg injuries in a single-car crash in Los Angeles County on Tuesday and quickly underwent multiple surgeries for fractures that affected both the upper and lower portions of the tibia and fibula bones which were stabilised by a rod inserted into the tibia and a combination of screws and pins, leading to talks about an end to his gloriously defining career.
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American 24-year-old Collin Morikawa, who won the Workday Championship on 18-under, admitted to being heavily influenced by Tiger. After winning the final round, he said: “Tiger means everything to me.”
“Yes, he had the crash and thankfully he’s all right and hopefully he has a quick and great recovery, but I don’t think we say thank you enough. So, I want to say thank you to Tiger.”
Tiger’s old sparring partner Phil Mickelson also donned red at the the PGA Tour Champions Cologuard Classic while fellow US Masters winner Fred Couples played a special Tiger ball.
It was not only male golfers involved in the tribute to Woods. A fellow golf icon, Annika Sorenstam, one of the best female golfers in history, joined in the honour roll on Sunday for her surprise post-retirement return to the LPGA Tour.
With all these, it was therefore shocking that Max Homa, who won the Woods-hosted Genesis Invitational the weekend before Tiger’s crash, announced that he would be unable to wear red and black. What gave his refusal to wear the Tiger colours an extra veneer of unbelievability was that Homa received his Genesis trophy from Woods himself in the days leading up to the accident.
He said: “I feel very thankful that it sounds like Tiger will be OK. Forget golf — I think that’s the furthest thing from what should be on anyone’s mind. I just want him to be able to live a normal life with his family. I know, it’s weird to feel like this about somebody you don’t really know, but that’s the effect that someone like Tiger Woods — or Kobe Bryant — can have.”
That was when the pile-on on Homa online began. He was branded “classless,” among other things. The hammering on Twitter was unrelenting as Homa only qualified for the Workday Championship by winning the Genesis, which Woods hosted.
The American golfing icon has reaped 15 majors and 82 PGA Tour titles in his professional career.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
