It is no secret that Tiger Woods shared a very close bond with his father, Earl Woods. In fact, had it not been for his dad, perhaps the golf legend may have never taken to the game. And until Woods Sr.’s unfortunate demise in 2006, the two could almost always be spotted on the course together. But the military man didn’t just have a huge impact on the golf pro’s game; he also influenced something almost as iconic as Woods himself. His celebration!

Tiger Woods goes head-to-head with his father

With 82 wins on the PGA Tour alone, the golf legend has perhaps celebrated in hundreds of different ways. But his most noteworthy one and almost certainly the one most loved by fans is his iconic “fist pump.” And while every golf fan has probably seen it, not many know about how it came to be. Putting it bluntly, had it not been for Earl, perhaps the sport would have never gotten that too!

Talking about it it in the PGA Tour’s recently released interview, ‘The Tiger Effect,’ Woods revealed the incident that started it all. He was playing at the Navy golf course with his father when he was 11 years old. And until then, the golf legend had never once beaten his father yet. But that day he found his chance; after a 20-foot putt on the 17th hole, the young Woods had managed to tie his score with Earl with just one hole to go!

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The last hole was a par-5, and Tiger was determined to make this the day he beat his father! On the last hole, too, the Woods duo were going head-to-head. They both ended up nearly 15 feet from the hole, and Earl had the first putt. “He missed,” said the 15-time major champion, reminiscing on how his 11-year-old self was filled with hope! “I knew what it was for. I’m sure he knew what it was for… he was adding it up.”

Woods’ first-ever fist pump

The youngster was focused. He knew it was a do-or-die moment for him, and fortunately, he did! “I made the putt and then gave my first fist pump,” he said, proud of his accomplishment. “I don’t know what came about; why I even did it, but it was such a big, monumental moment.”

For the young golfer, that day marked an important moment in his calendar. He had just beaten the same man who was always ahead of him. “We’d all play from the same tee, and it’d take me two drives to not get to his drive… to now, we’re competing on the same levels,” he said, delighted for his younger self. “We had a lot of great battles.”

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Now, nearly 5 decades later, his great victory over Earl is celebrated worldwide through his historic celebration!