PGA Championship 2026: The incredibly charming story of the first time Aaron Rai met his childhood hero Tiger Woods

Like many golf pros, newly minted PGA Championship winner Aaron Rai grew up a fan of Tiger Woods. It started by watching him play on old VHS video tapes. Growing up in Wolverhampton, England and taking up golf at the age of four, Rai spent countless hours watching video of Woods’ victories with his father, Amrik.

“Oh, mate, we watched videos of Tiger’s wins at the U.S. Amateur [in 1993, ’94 and ’95] and his major championship wins, probably every three or four days. I loved watching those major wins around that 2000 period,” Rai said at the 2023 Genesis Invitational, where met Woods face-to-face for the first time. “He’s been my idol since a very young age. He’s probably the biggest reason I play golf and I’m sure that’s the case for a lot of a lot of guys of my generation.

Once Rai won the first of his three DP World Tour titles, he got to compete in the same event as Woods at the World Golf Championships event in Mexico in 2019, but it wasn’t until the 2023 Genesis that the 27-year-old finally got to meet Woods, albeit in unusual circumstances. Rai didn’t have a spot in the pro-am, so he decided to brave the morning chill and watch Tiger make his return to Riviera, eventually getting the courage to say hello to him on the par-5 11th.

“When I saw that it was really windy, and I knew I was limited what I could do in practice, I decided to [try and meet Woods] and then do a little more practice myself in the afternoon,” Rai said when spotted outside the gallery ropes.

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Brisk, windy conditions greeted Tiger Woods during Wednesday’s Pro-Am at the Genesis Invitational.

Cliff Hawkins

It’s not often a PGA Tour player watches a colleague in a pro-am, but for his childhood hero, Rai was willing to make an exception. After Woods ripped a low fade through the wind with a driver down the middle of the fairway on No.11, Rai approached Rob McNamara, Woods’ close friend and VP of Woods’ TGR foundation, and introduced himself. McNamara then introduced Rai to Woods and the pair shot spoke while Woods’ amateur partners teed off on the forward tees.

“It was very conversational,” Rai said. “He asked me what time I’m playing tomorrow. We spoke about Rory [McIlroy] and JT [Justin Thomas] and how they play a little bit together back home [in Jupiter, Fla.]. He told me a little bit about himself and his garden at home with his short game area. Then he wished me all the best for the rest of the week. He made me feel very welcome.”

Buzzing at the interaction, Rai decided to walk with Woods for the entire back nine.

Rai first got to see Woods in person at 2013 Open at Muirfield. “My dad and I drove up in the early hours and got there at half 6 to watch a practice round. There was no one there, but by his final few holes there was a massive gallery.”

Rai was too nervous to approach Woods when they both played the 2019 WGC-Mexico Championship in Mexico City, just two months before Woods’ fifth Masters victory at Augusta National. With the Wanamaker now in his trophy cabinet, however, he won’t hesitate to say hello the next time he bumps into the Big Cat.

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