Charlie Woods has been making a name for himself in junior golf and the son of Tiger Woods has undergone a physical transformation in recent years to aid his progress
Charlie Woods has been credited with improving his physique away from the golf course(Image: Tim Heitman/Getty Images)
Charlie Woods, son of golfing legend Tiger Woods, has been making waves in the junior golf scene, with his coach revealing the physical transformation he’s undergone. The 16-year-old prodigy has been in the limelight since making his PNC Championship debut alongside his famous father at just 11 years old.
Despite not yet clinching a win at the event, Charlie celebrated his first hole-in-one at the PNC Championship last December, hinting at a promising future following in his dad’s footsteps. The young golfer won his first American Junior Golf Association title at the TaylorMade Invitational in May.
Woods recently tied for ninth at the Junior PGA Championship, reacting well after missing the cut at the US Junior Amateur. However, it’s not just his natural talent contributing to Woods’ ascendency within the sport, as his high school coach has shed light on Charlie’s hard work off the course.
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“Charlie knows a lot of the attention is going to be on him and he knows not to put himself in an uncomfortable position, but his teammates are protective of him,” Benjamin Buccaneers coach Toby Harbeck told The Palm Beach Post.
“Charlie has come a long way in two years. He’s lost 10 pounds and is ready to take on that No. 1 role.”
Harbeck, who has also coached Jack Nicklaus’ sons Gary and Michael, added: “When Tiger and Elin show up to watch, Tiger is a different person than what you see on TV. Just like Jack [Nicklaus] was.”
Charlie Woods finished T9 at the Junior PGA Championship earlier this month(Image: Ryan Lochhead/PGA of America)
While Harbeck’s primary aim is for The Benjamin School to win the Florida state championship, Woods may still be smarting from recent blows to his hopes of qualifying for Team USA at the Junior Ryder Cup. His T9 finish at the Junior PGA Championship and missing the cut at the US Junior Amateur mean he may have to rely on being a captain’s pick for the tournament.
Despite these issues, Tiger has always spoken glowingly about his son’s future in the sport. At the 2024 PNC Championship, Woods reflected on Charlie’s performance, including his first-ever hole-in-one, after the pair lost in a playoff to Bernhard and Jason Langer.
“He [Charlie] has gotten better at every facet of the game,” Woods said in December, as reported by Sky Sports. “That’s a commitment to practicing and developing as a player. I think that most of us forget he’s only 15 years old.
“I know he’s been doing this in front of the media for a long time but, being only 15, I think it’s incredible what he’s been able to accomplish so far and the ceiling that he has is unlimited.”
Tiger and Charlie Woods have competed as a team at the PNC Championship since 2020(Image: Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
After watching his son hit an ace, Woods added: “That was the thrill of a lifetime to be able to have that moment with Charlie, make his first hole-in-one, Sam [Tiger’s daughter] on the bag, just our family and friends,” Woods added. “That’s what this event is about. It’s about bonding and family.
“For us to have that experience together, I know we didn’t win, but it was the fact that we competed. No one really made a mistake out there. We had to earn it and that’s what you want to have. Hats off to the Langers – they played amazing.”
On scoring his first hole-in-one, Woods Jnr shared: “It was awesome having Dad there. That was so much fun. It was just a perfect seven-iron, little cut in there. Of course never got to see it go in. So that sucks. But that’s all right.”
