Tiger Woods is a three-time winner of The Open Championship but even his face on a giant billboard didn’t prevent a security guard from denying him access.
Tiger Woods had an awkward encounter with security (Image: Sean M. Haffey, Getty Images)
Tiger Woods once had an unforgettable run-in with a security guard who failed to recognise him and refused him entry to The Open Championship. That was despite the legendary golfer being at the peak of his illustrious career at the time.
The 15-time major champion, now aged 49, has plenty of fond memories at the tournament. He has won the Claret Jug on three occasions, with his most recent triumph coming in 2006. Woods missed The Open at Royal Portrush last week due to injury, having sustained an Achilles rupture in March of this year. He’s endured a difficult few years with numerous operations on his back and lower limbs which has limited his involvement to a part-time stint on the PGA Tour, where he’s concentrated on being fit for the majors. His most recent appearance at a sanctioned Tour event was at the Open last year, where despite the huge buzz surrounding his comeback, he failed to make the cut – his third straight miss at a major that year.
Despite his struggles at the season’s last major, Woods remains among the most successful players in its history. Yet, his mastery on the course couldn’t spare him from an awkward encounter with a security guard at Royal Troon, which he dealt with in seriously cool fashion.
PGA golfer Michael Kim recalled a tale from a past edition of the Open Championship, during Woods’ prime, about an incident in Scotland. “At the Open Championship, players get a clip as credentials to get you into the locker room and everywhere else,” Kim said last year on X.
“Mid 2000s, Tiger forgot his clip one day, and he was walking into the locker room when the security person stopped him asking for his credentials. Tiger looks around, sees a massive billboard with his name and face on it, points to it, says, ‘That’s my credentials,’ and walked into the locker room.”
Tiger Woods has won The Open three times in his career (Image: JOHN D MCHUGH/AFP via Getty Images)
Looking back at a disappointing showing after missing the cut last year, Woods admitted: “It wasn’t very good. I made a double there at two and I was just fighting it all day. I never really hit it close enough to hit birdies and I made a lot of bogeys.
“I would have liked to have played more but I just wanted to make sure I was able to play the major championships. I’ve got a lot of time off to get better physically, which has been the case all year.”
However, Woods remained positive about his physical progress despite poor results, stating: “I’ve gotten better even though my results haven’t shown it, but physically I’ve gotten better, which is great.
“I need to keep progressing like that and eventually start playing more competitively and start getting into the competitive flow again.” It remains to be seen when Woods – who celebrates his 50th birthday in December – will make his return to golf.
