When we think of Tiger Woods, one of many things that comes to our mind is him and his iconic Red and Black outfits, reserved for Sunday. Now imagine, a twinning moment on the course. Intentional or unintentional? Not sure, its “‘pretty ballsy.’” For sure. At least that’s what Woods’s former caddie, Steve Williams said when Rocco Mediate wore a black and red outfit at the 108th US Open. Williams told the ‘Chasing Majors’ podcast. “He[Tiger Woods] was bewildered. I don’t know if anybody else would do that.”

The 2008 US Open held at the infamous Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego California saw an intense competition in which Woods emerged as the top performer alongside Rocco Mediate. Both of them had a score of 1 under par and entered the 18-hole playoff. Rocco Mediate managed to go toe-to-toe before succumbing to Woods in the sudden death at the par-4 7 hole. Other than this, what got everyone talking was Mediate’s attire. Williams revealed what Woods thought at the time; “Can you honestly believe what he’s got on?”  While many considered the attire to be a mental game played by Rocco Mediate but was it? Not quite.

The 62-year-old set the record straight while speaking to Subpar. “It’s the last shirt I had because who packs that much? It’s the last vest I had and it’s the last pair of pants I had.” The Florida native was caught in an unfortunate moment with his wardrobe right in the middle of his best-ever major outing. Rocco also addressed all the talks about whether he put on the red shirt and black pants to get into Woods’s head and throw him off his game.

“Everyone thinks that ‘you’ tried to get in his head. Yeah, that would have worked!” exclaimed Mediate sarcastically, indicating that mind games at that level do not faze greats of the game. He also explained Tiger Woods’s reaction upon seeing it; “I walked over to say hello, that morning and he said nice f*****g shirt. The first thing he said. Not good morning or how are you doing.”

Despite being surprised, Tiger Woods showcased his mental toughness by outlasting Rocco Mediate in thrilling fashion. The red shirt worn by Rocco did not prove to have any intense influence on the golfing legend. As Woods’s former caddie said, “It just added to the whole excitement. The whole drama and everything.”

But why does he prefer wearing red and black in the final rounds? It’s because of his mom, Kutilda. 

Tiger Woods’s special connection with red and black outfits

Woods’s red and black shirt is nothing new. His standard across all tournaments has become iconic due to his impeccable record and winning prowess. The story behind the origin of this now-famous attire is simple and rooted in his upbringing.

During his appearance on The Tonight Show, Woods mentioned that his mother influenced him to wear the now-iconic combination. “My mom thought, being a Capricorn, that [red] was my power color, or some BS thing like that, so I end up wearing red and end up winning some golf tournaments,” he said. He did try to go off-script with his attire, but it did not work out his way. “And then to spite her, I wore blue, and I did not win those tournaments. So Mom is always right.” The combination, now iconic, also led to the Florida native creating his brand, “Sun Day Red.”

The red-and-black attire has seen many victories over the years, but the 2008 US Open will be one of the more remarkable occasions associated with it because of the added drama!