The year is 1989 and Tiger Woods is a mere 13-year-old amateur golfer. But IMG agent Hughes Norton saw the future. He turned up at Earl Woods’s door and became his son’s first agent helping him to record-making deals with Nike and Titleist even before Tiger had turned pro.  Norton would become an integral part of the Tiger Woods brand over the next two years before his abrupt firing by the golf icon.

Norton had enjoyed a working relationship with Tiger’s father, Earl, putting him on IMG’s payroll as a junior talent scout. He also brought Butch Harmon on board as Tiger’s swing coach to help the young golfer early in his career. Yet, when the decision came to part ways, Woods was quite ruthless with his former agent.

What happened 26 years ago with Tiger Woods?

In August 1996, when Tiger turned pro, Norton officially joined him as his agent. His first order of business was to orchestrate a $60 million deal for the golfer to endorse Titleist and Nike over the next five years. This was not all though. He got Tiger hooked up with a $25 million deal with Amex for five years, $4.6 million per year for three years from a Japanese beverage maker, and another $250,000 from Wheaties to be the face of their cereal. Norton had secured Woods’s future financially for years to come.

But in September of 1998, everything would change for Norton. Two years after doing all he could to put Woods on a financial pedestal he was let go in an inconsiderate fashion, according to the agent. In an interview for The Golfer’s Journal, former IMG agent Hughes Norton shared his experience of how things ended with Woods.

Norton narrated,

“So I get a phone call in September of 1998. So I’ve been representing Tiger for two years and a month since he turned Pro in in August of 96 and you know we talked all the time. ‘Hey tiger what’s up? He said ‘Hughes it’s over.’ I’m thinking ‘What’s over?’ He said ‘I don’t want you to represent me anymore.’ This is out of the blue. And I said you’re joking right? He said no. He said, ‘I’ve just made a decision. I’m just letting you know.'”

Unable to grasp the situation, Norton asked to meet him but Tiger refused initially. However, Norton said, “Conversation ensued, I basically persuaded I’m against his will that I had to come down there I’m not I’m not going to accept this you know over the phone and so sleepless night for me.” But if Norton had hoped to have Tiger change his mind he was mistaken.

As Norton flew to Orlando to clear the air, he was met with a hostile Tiger Woods at the Isleworth clubhouse.

“So I meet him at the front door and there he just looks very hostile and I said well let’s go inside and sit down and talk. He said no. I said Tiger I came all the way. He said I told you not to come down here. I told you this was a waste of time. I don’t want to discuss it. My mind is made up.” Hughes Norton confirmed, “That’s the last time I ever spoke to Tiger Woods.” The disassociation with Tiger Woods cost Norton dearly.

Just 60 days later he lost his job at IMG when his boss handed him a termination contract. He was paid $9 million not to work or talk about his former employer for the next 10 years. Before Woods, he had represented Norman, for 11 years before the golfer ended their business relationship. A powerful super agent who was once associated with two golfing greats faded into obscurity.

His relationship with Woods ended on a sour note and this ordeal was also addressed in his memoir which came out on March 26 this year.

Norton described Tiger Woods as “zombie-like”

In his memoir, Norton brought up his firing from Tiger Woods and how it came out of nowhere. He described the situation when an “emotionless Tiger stood zombie-like” and told him that his services were no longer needed. Moreover, in an interview with Today’s Golfer in May, Norton mentioned that to this day he got no answers for his firing.

He said, “The worst part honestly was that there was no explanation. It’s just so bizarre the way Tiger severs relationships with people in his life, whether it’s caddies or girlfriends or managers. I would love to sit down with Tiger today and say, ‘Flashback 25 years, what was the reason? You never gave me any indication that something was wrong or that you weren’t happy’. That leads into my feelings of betrayal because it was very tough to swallow.”

Norton had a massive role in Tiger’s rise to popularity and helped him to historic deals. But in the end, the super agent was cast out and had a tough time finding his feet. With his memoir and other interviews, we are now getting an insight into how one of the formidable partnerships in golf ended and how Norton still feels betrayed about how Tiger Woods treated him all those years ago.