Banner day for Woods
ANAHEIM, Calif. – Tiger Woods didn’t have to hit a spectacular shot or pump his fist to find satisfaction. Instead, he gripped an oversized pair of scissors and cut the ribbon to officially open his $25 million learning center Friday aimed at helping children find their way.
“This is by far the greatest thing that has ever happened to me,” said Woods, a winner of 57 tournaments worldwide and 10 major championships. “This is bigger than golf. This is bigger than anything I’ve done on the golf course. Because we will be able to shape lives.”
But even a grand-opening ceremony came off with the kind of flair that has marked his career.
Woods was joined by former President Clinton and Maria Shriver, the wife of California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, along with dozens of the estimated 5,000 children who will pass through the doors of the Tiger Woods Learning Center by the end of the year.
The 35,000-square-foot facility is located next to the H.G. “Dad” Miller Golf Course, where Woods played when he was in high school. Kids who apply by writing letters come to the center after school for interactive programs in science, math and technology.
“I’m impressed Tiger Woods decided to do this when he was 30 instead of when he was 60,” Clinton said.
Clinton recalled being elected governor of Arkansas when he was 32, the youngest person elected to that position in 40 years. He referred to himself as a “good governor and a political failure.”
“It’s hard to have great gifts and bring them to bear in the public eye under enormous pressure when you’re young,” Clinton said, then turning to Woods.
“And it’s a tribute to you … that somehow you’ve been able to amass a stunning, unprecedented record and keep holding yourself up to start giving back at this point in your life.”
The only sad note to a day of brilliant sunshine was the absence of his father, Earl Woods, who is battling cancer and could not leave his home a short drive away.
Woods nearly broke down when he mentioned the support of his father, just as he did last April when he won the Masters for the fourth time.
“I talked to him last night,” Woods said. “He kept telling me how proud he was of what I was able to do.”
The Tiger Woods Foundation was created shortly after Woods turned pro, and although his focus immediately turned to children, he did not have a clear vision of what to do.
That changed after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Woods, stranded in St. Louis where a World Golf Championship was canceled, drove to Florida and said he spent most of that time reflecting on his life and the foundation.
“I felt we weren’t doing enough,” Woods said.
That’s when he thought of the idea of a learning center, and it took 31/2 years from the first meeting with Orange County officials to reach the grand opening.