The world may have gotten a glimpse at the future of golf on Dec. 19 with the start of the 2020 PNC Championship in Orlando, Florida. It was there that Tiger Woods and his boy, Charlie, 11, took part in the father-son competition for the very first time. All eyes were on Charlie — who twinned with his dad in a bright purple golf shirt — as he stunned viewers with an incredible shot.
Eagle for Team Woods. 🦅
-3 thru 3. 👀 pic.twitter.com/mtxecAh5k5
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 19, 2020
The father-son duo were in fourth place at the time of Charlie’s third hole shot — which a PGA Tour announcer declared was the only “eagle shot” of the day — and Tiger looked over the moon as he watched his son! “Charlie steps up, and he days, ‘dad, I’ve got you on this.’ The only eagle of the day,” the announcer said over the video. “We believe this was a five wood which he ripped from 175 yards with dad watching close by…it was within about four feet for eagle,” he added. Technically, the 11-year-old was just shy of his stroke being an eagle shot — but he was extremely close! Tiger had an ear-to-ear grin on his face as he high-fived Charlie.
The PNC Championship, formerly known as the “Father/Son Challenge,” provides “the chance to see 20 Major Champions team up with a member of their family and play the game they truly love — together,” according to the tournament’s website. To qualify, participants must have won a Major Championship or The PLAYERS Championship. Tiger and Charlie will go up against pairings like Lee Trevino and his son, Daniel, Annika Sorenstam and her father Tom, Bubba Watson and his father-in-law, Wayne, and last year’s winner Bernhard Langer. In 2019, the German golfer won alongside Jason Langer. This year, Bernhard will compete with his daughter, Jackie.
“I can’t tell you how excited I am to be playing with Charlie in our first official tournament together,” Tiger said in November. “It’s been great watching him progress as a junior golfer, and it will be incredible playing as a team together in the PNC Championship.” Tiger, while speaking with GOLFTV, said that his song is “starting to understand how to play. He’s asking me the right questions. I’ve kept it competitive with his par, so it’s been just an absolute blast to go out there and just be with him. It reminds me so much of me and my dad [growing up].”
Supposedly, there are some aspects of the game that Charlie has picked up on faster than others. “For some reason, Charlie just always wants to beat me, it doesn’t matter what it is,” Major champion Justin Tomas, told USA Today. “Although he’s never beaten me in golf or a putting contest, he still talks trash just like his dad. We’ll have that, like, inner tournament within a tournament, try to shut his little mouth up, but it will be fun.
Charlie has won two events on the South Florida PGA Junior Tour, with Tiger acting as his caddie. “I wish I had his move,” Woods said. “I analyze his swing all the time. I wish I could rotate like that and turn my head like that and do some of those positions. Those days are long gone. I have to re-live it through him.”