This is the remarkable moment Tiger Woods‘ son Charlie hit his first ever hole-in-one on national TV at the PNC Championship on Sunday.
Charlie, 15, was playing alongside his superstar dad in Orlando when the incredible moment occurred on the par-3 fourth hole, leading to wild celebrations.
The pair were already sitting pretty among the leaders of the tournament when the teenager stepped up to take his tee shot.
Incredibly, it landed a few feet in front of the hole and then bounced straight down the cup – much to the surprise of Charlie himself.
Back on the tee, he looked around in shock, asking whether the ball had gone in. When he was told that it had, dad Tiger was the first on the scene to congratulate him.
The famous pair then had a bear hug on the tee, with Tiger looking delighted at his son’s achievement.
Tiger Woods bear hugs his son Charlie, 15, after the youngster fired in a hole-in-one
Tiger was first on the scene to celebrate with his son after the incredible moment on live TV
Charlie Woods just made his first ever hole-in-one!!
📺: GOLF Channel pic.twitter.com/yEvN3HuYWP
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 22, 2024
It is the first time Charlie has ever hit a hole-in-one, and it couldn’t have come at a better time, with the pair fighting for the lead in a nationally-televised competition.
Going into the final round on Sunday, the Woods’ shared the lead for the tournament alongside Bernhard Langer and son Jason, and Vijay Singh and son Qass.
For Tiger it is an important weekend in terms of his health, as he returns from his sixth back surgery.
Woods said he scheduled the recent operation to be sure he recovered in time to play with his son for the fifth straight year.
Tiger’s daughter Sam was also back caddying for her dad and brother, meaning it was a real family affair when the historic moment occurred.
Charlie is expected to have a bright future on the golf course as he tries to follow in the footsteps of his father – the greatest player of all-time.
He qualified for his first U.S. Junior Amateur this year, making it to Oakland Hills but not staying very long. He shot rounds of 82-80 and didn’t make it to match play.
Woods was delighted to be in such close proximity to his son’s historic moment in Orlando
It was a family affair for Tiger, with his son playing alongside him and his daughter on the bag
Tiger couldn’t believe his eyes, with the pair fighting right at the top of the leaderboard
He also fell short in Monday qualifying for the Cognizant Classic on the PGA Tour and U.S. Open qualifying.
But he said the U.S. Junior was his biggest learning moment.
‘It’s about focusing on my playing,’ Charlie said. ‘I was so focused on winning and how I played that it kind of crept into how am I going to win instead of how I´m going to play the shot. And it kind of built up and that caused two very, very bad rounds of golf. But live and learn.’
His father listened to the answer and nodded. ‘Learn,’ Woods said.
On the eve of the tournament, Woods shared how hard his recovery from surgery had been, noting how he is present to simply compete alongside Charlie.
Woods’ daughter Sam carried the bags for her father in the PNC Championship this weekend
Charlie speaks to his dad on the fairway as he goes to collect his hole-in-one ball
‘That was one of the reasons why I had the surgery done earlier, so that hopefully I could give myself the best chance to be with Charlie and be able to play,’ Woods said.
‘I’m not competitive right now, but I just want to be able to have the experience again. This has always been one of the bigger highlights of the year for us as a family, and now we get to have that moment together again.
‘I’m not going to feel what I’m used to feeling. The recovery has gotten to be the hardest part. But over the course of rounds, weeks, months, it gets harder.’
The PNC Championship is for players who won a major or The Players Championship and a family member. Annika Sorenstam is playing with her son, while Nelly Korda is playing with her father. Steve Stricker – winner of seven senior majors – is playing with daughter Izzy, a freshman at Wisconsin.
