Look up not out in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress. A batsman's score is often appended with an asterisk to indicate that he was not out; for example, '10*' is read '10 not out'.

At least one batsman will be not out at the end of an innings, because once ten batsmen are out, the eleventh will have no partner to bat on with. Two batsmen will be not out if a declaration is made in first-class cricket, and often at the end of the scheduled number of overs in limited overs cricket. A batsman further down the batting order than the not-out batsmen will not come out to the crease at all and is noted as did not bat rather than not out; by contrast, a batsman who comes to the crease but faces no balls is not out. A batsman who retires hurt is considered not out; an uninjured batsman who retires is considered retired out.

Batting averages are calculated as runs divided by outs, which means that a player who often ends the innings not out may get an inflated batting average.^[1] Examples of this include Michael Bevan (67 not outs in ODIs), James Anderson (12 not outs in 16 Test innings), and Bill Johnston topping the batting averages on the 1953 Australian tour of England.^[1] However, the flip side of the argument is that, if not outs were counted for the purpose of batting averages, a good batsman could come in and only have time to make 0 not out, facing three balls from a bowler, and thus get unduly penalised for factors out of his control. This argument is prevailing among cricket statisticians, who have used this method of collecting batting averages since the 18th century. Furthermore a batsman will tend to be at his most vulnerable early in an innings before he has "got his eye in"; as a result it may be considered a greater achievement to achieve two scores of 20 not out and 20 (averaging 40) than to make one score of 40, since in the latter instance the batsman will only have had to negotiate the start of one innings.

References[link]

Hashim Mahomed Amla (born 31 March 1983) is a South African cricketer. A right-handed upper order batsman^[1] and occasional medium-pace bowler, Amla bats at number 3 for South Africa in Test matches and has opened in limited overs contests. He is currently ranked by the International Cricket Council as the world's top batsman in One Day Internationals (ODIs).

Early years[link]

Upon graduating from Durban High School and impressing in the youth circuit, Amla made his debut for his provincial team, the KwaZulu Natal Dolphins, soon captaining South Africa at the 2002 Under-19 Cricket World Cup in New Zealand, leading his team to the final.^[2][3] During his formative years, former Western Province captain and coach Hylton Ackerman had been influential in Amla's development, first spotting his talent and honing his skills during his coaching career.^[4] His promise led him to being appointed captain of Kwazulu-Natal at the young age of 21. Amla is a devout practicing Muslim^[3] Amla has been cited as a future captain of South Africa ever since his first class years.^[3][5]

International career[link]

Upon being appointed captain of the Dolphins, Amla began the 2004-05 South African domestic season by scoring four centuries during his first eight innings.^[2] His success at the domestic level and consistent performances for the South Africa A squad led to him being chosen for the winter 2004 tour of India at the age of 21, thereby becoming the first South African of Indian descent to represent South Africa in international cricket.^[3][6]

Making his debut in Eden Gardens, Kolkata, on 28 November 2004, he initially made a slow start to his career, with his technique having been criticized after scoring 36 runs in the 2004 series against England.^[2][3] After honing his technique and working on his skills with the Dolphins, for whom he regularly top-scored in the South African domestic circuit, he proved his critics wrong in 2006 as he scored a comeback 149 against New Zealand at Newlands, Cape Town, helping guide South Africa to a match-saving draw.^[2][4] He subsequently continued this success, earning a national contract and scoring 1599 runs at an average of 57.10 in his next 19 Tests, solidifying his position as South Africa's number 3 batsman.^[3][7][8]

On 27 March 2008, he scored an unbeaten 159 against India in Chennai amidst searing conditions.^[3] His success throughout the 2008 year, in which he scored 1012 runs, consisted of numerous centuries and solid performances against India, England and Australia.^[2][4] During South Africa's 2009 tour of Australia, Amla helped South Africa win a historic Test and one day series victory over Australia, scoring 259 runs at an average of 51.80 during the Tests and contributing crucial scores in the one day series, including a match-winning 80 in the series clincher.^[9][10]

In April 2009, Amla was signed by Essex as their overseas player for a portion of the 2009 English county season, as a short-term replacement for Danish Kaneria.^[11][12] During his stay at the club, he scored two centuries in two Championship matches, including a match-saving 181 on his debut, the highest score by an Essex debutant, as well as 111 runs off 107 in his first Pro40 match, against Sussex.^[13][14] Essex fans had warmed to him throughout his stay, affectionately calling him "W.G" in reference to W.G. Grace.^[14]

During England's 2009-10 tour of South Africa, Amla was an integral member of the side throughout the series, scoring a crucial century in the first Test at Centurion and contributing important innings during the rest of the series.^[15][16] His performances also saw him move up the ICC Test Batting rankings.^[17]

Top form (2010)[link]

Amla started 2010 in February against India in a two-match test series against India in India. In the first test he scored 253* as South Africa reached 558. After this a superb bowling performance from Dale Steyn meant that India were bowled out for 233 with Steyn bagging seven wickets. India forced to follow-on were bowled out for 319 as South Africa won by an innings and six runs. In the second test match Amla made 114 before being caught by MS Dhoni despite Amla's century the remaining South African batting order could only manage 296. India batted and scored 643 with centuries from Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman. The South African chase collapsed poorly but Amla still managed another century scoring 123* as South Africa were bowled out for 290 and crashed to an innings defeat. After this Amla toured the West Indies for 5 ODIs and three test matches. Amla top scored in the first ODI with 102 as South Africa coasted to a comfortable victory. He followed this up with 92 in the second ODI as South Africa against sealed 17 run victory, in the third ODI Amla scored 30, but in the fourth ODI he returned with a century in scoring 129 of 115 balls. He made 45 in the fifth and final ODI before he was run-out by Kieron Pollard as South Africa won narrowly by one wicket.

The three match test series was one where Amla performed consistently but didn't register any centuries, he top scored with 44. The first test was a poor one for Amla scoring 2 and 5 as South Africa still won comfortably. In the following test he scored 44 and 41 as the match was drawn, he scored 5 and 25 in the final test match as South Africa won by seven wickets.

In the three match ODI series against Zimbabwe Amla scored 110 as South Africa gave Zimbabwe 351 to win and South Africa won the match by 64 runs. The second ODI saw Amla score 110 as South Africa cruised to an 8 wicket victory and sealed the three match series with one game to spare. Amla had a quiet final ODI scoring 24 as South Africa won by 264 runs.

Amla went into a five-match ODI series against Pakistan on the back of good form and in the first ODI managed 35 as South Africa won by 8 wickets. Amla scored a quickfire half century in the second ODI before being given leg-before to a Shahid Afridi leg-break, despite this good knock from Amla and 286 from South Africa the couldn't win the match courtesy of a superb century by Abdul Razzaq scoring 109 of just 73 balls. In the third ODI Amla scored 119* as the rest of the South African order collapsed around him and the team only managed 228, however South Africa won the match by just two runs courtesy of some superb death bowling yorkers from Rusty Theron.

Following these excellent performances in the ODI format Amla was selected in the 12-man Twenty20 squad against India, at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, he was selected in place of opener Loots Bosman, the most significant thing about the match before it started or ended was that it was the final match of Makhaya Ntini ^[18]

Dean Jones controversy[link]

During a Test match between South Africa and Sri Lanka on August 7, 2006, Ten Sports commentator Dean Jones referred to Amla as a "terrorist" after he had taken a catch; after incorrectly assuming that broadcasters had switched to a commercial break, he had said "The terrorist gets another wicket".^[3] The broadcast was aired around the world, including South Africa, and he was subsequently widely condemned by South African fans, players and several former cricketers and commentators, leading to the channel terminating its contract with Jones.^[3] After the incident Jones reportedly apologized to Amla, stating that his comments were never "supposed to be heard over the air", which he accepted.^[3]

Personal life[link]

Amla at fielding practice, Adelaide Oval, January 2009

Born to a South African Muslim family, Amla's grandparents are originally from Surat, Gujarat, having emigrated to South Africa numerous years earlier.^[2] Amla is spiritually inspired by Moulana Yunus Patel, a reputed South African Islamic scholar and a Sufism practitioner. His elder brother, Ahmed, is also a professional cricketer, having made his debut two years earlier, and currently captains the Dolphins.^[19] Upon his Test debut, he successfully requested that alcohol-promoting logos not be shown on his merchandise and playing gear.

International Centuries[link]

Test Cricket Centuries[link]

• In the column Runs, * indicates being not out
• The column title Match refers to the Match Number of the player's career

Test Cricket Centuries of Hashim Amla

	Runs	Match	Against	City/Country	Venue	Year
1	149	4	New Zealand	Cape Town, South Africa	Newlands Cricket Ground	2006
2	176*	16	New Zealand	Johannesburg, South Africa	Wanderers Stadium	2007
3	103	17	New Zealand	Centurion, South Africa	SuperSport Park	2007
4	159	23	India	Chennai, India	MA Chidambaram Stadium	2008
5	104*	26	England	London, England	Lord's Cricket Ground	2008
6	112	30	Bangladesh	Bloemfontein, South Africa	Springbok Park	2008
7	100	38	England	Centurion, South Africa	SuperSport Park	2009
8	253*	44	India	Nagpur, India	VCA Stadium	2010
9	114	45	India	Kolkata, India	Eden Gardens	2010
10	123*
11	118*	47	Pakistan	Dubai, United Arab Emirates	Dubai International Cricket Stadium	2010
12	140	48	India	Centurion, South Africa	SuperSport Park	2010
13	112	52	Australia	Cape Town, South Africa	Newlands Cricket Ground	2011
14	105	53	Australia	Johannesburg, South Africa	Wanderers Stadium	2011

Man of the Match Awards in Test Cricket[link]

Man of the Match Awards taken by Hashim Amla in Test Cricket
Serial No.	Against	Venue or Field	Season / Yr.	Contribution in Match
1.	Pakistan	Centurion, South Africa	2007	71 & 64*
2.	India	Nagpur, India	2010	253*
3.	India	Eden Gardens, Kolkata, India	2010	114 & 123*
last update: (April 28, 2011)

ODI Cricket Centuries[link]

• In the column Runs, * indicates being not out
• The column title Match refers to the Match Number of the player's career

One-Day International Centuries of Hashim Amla

	Runs	Match	Against	City/Country	Venue	Year
1	140	4	Bangladesh	Benoni, South Africa	Willowmoore Park	2008
2	102	16	West Indies	North Sound, Antigua	Sir Viv Richards Stadium	2010
3	129	17	West Indies	Roseau, Dominica	Windsor Park	2010
4	110	29	Zimbabwe	Bloemfontein, South Africa	Springbok Park	2010
5	110	30	Zimbabwe	Potchefstroom, South Africa	Senwes Park	2010
6	119*	35	Pakistan	Dubai, United Arab Emirates	Dubai International Cricket Stadium	2010
7	116*[20]	42	India	Centurion, South Africa	SuperSport Park	2011
8	113	44	Netherlands	Mohali, Chandigarh, India	PCA Stadium	2011
9	112	53	Sri Lanka	Paarl, South Africa	Boland Bank Park	2012

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hashim Amla

• Player profile: Hashim Amla from ESPNcricinfo

Ted Cruz
Texas Solicitor General
In office 2003 – May 2008
Preceded by	Julie Parsley
Succeeded by	James C. Ho
Personal details
Born	(1970-12-22) December 22, 1970 (age 41) Calgary, Alberta, Canada[1]
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Heidi Suzanne Cruz
Children	Caroline Camille Catherine Christiane
Residence	Houston, Texas
Alma mater	Princeton University Harvard Law School
Profession	Attorney
Religion	Southern Baptist[2]
Website	tedcruz.org

Rafael Edward Cruz, known as Ted Cruz (born December 22, 1970), is the former Solicitor General of the U.S. state of Texas, a position which he held from 2003 to May 2008. Cruz was appointed by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott. He was the first Hispanic Solicitor General in Texas, the youngest Solicitor General in the United States, and had the longest tenure in the post thus far in Texas history. He is currently a partner at the law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, where he leads the firm’s U.S. Supreme Court and national appellate litigation practice.^[3]

Cruz is a candidate for the 2012 Republican nomination for the United States Senate seat being vacated by Kay Bailey Hutchison.^[4]

Cruz previously served as the director of the Office of Policy Planning at the Federal Trade Commission, an Associate Deputy Attorney General at the United States Department of Justice, and as Domestic Policy Advisor to U.S. President George W. Bush on the 2000 Bush-Cheney campaign. In addition, from 2004-2009 Cruz was an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Texas School of Law in Austin, where he taught U.S. Supreme Court litigation.

Early life and education[link]

Cruz was born to a Cuban-American father and an American mother in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where his parents were working in the petroleum business.^[1] His father was imprisoned and tortured in Cuba until he escaped to freedom in Texas in 1957.^[5]

Cruz attended high school at Faith West Academy in Katy, Texas,^[6] and then graduated from Second Baptist High School in Houston.

Cruz earned his Bachelor of Arts from Princeton University and his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. While at Princeton, he competed for the American Whig-Cliosophic Society's Debate Panel as one of North America's top-ranked parliamentary debaters, winning the top speaker award at both the 1992 U.S. National Debating Championship and the 1992 North American Debating Championship.^[7] In 1992, he was named Speaker of the Year and Team of the Year (with his debate partner, David Panton) by the American Parliamentary Debate Association.^[7] Cruz was also a semi-finalist at the 1995 World Universities Debating Championship.^[8]

Cruz graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School. He was a primary editor of the Harvard Law Review, an executive editor of the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy, and a founding editor of the Harvard Latino Law Review.^[9]

Legal career[link]

Cruz also served as a law clerk to William Rehnquist, then-Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, and J. Michael Luttig of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.^[10] Cruz was the first Hispanic ever to clerk for a Chief Justice of the United States.^[11]

Cruz has authored more than eighty briefs before the United States Supreme Court and presented forty-three oral arguments, including nine before the United States Supreme Court.

In the landmark case of District of Columbia v. Heller, Cruz assembled a coalition of thirty-one states in defense of the principle that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees an individual right to keep and bear arms.^[12] Cruz also presented oral argument for the amici states in the companion case to Heller before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

In addition to his victory in Heller, Cruz has successfully defended the Ten Commandments monument on the Texas State Capitol grounds, the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools and the 2003 Texas redistricting plan.^[13]

Cruz also successfully defended, in Medellin v. Texas, the State of Texas against an attempt by the International Court of Justice to re-open the criminal convictions of 51 murderers on death row throughout the United States.^[14]

2012 U.S. Senate election[link]

Cruz speaking to values voters in October 2011.

On January 19, 2011, following an announcement that U.S. Senator Hutchison would not seek reelection, Cruz announced via blogger conference call his candidacy for the position.^[4]

Cruz has been endorsed by David Barton, founder and president of WallBuilders,^[15] the Club for Growth, a conservative political action committee,^[16] Erick Erickson, editor of prominent conservative blog RedState,^[17] the FreedomWorks for America super PAC,^[18] Princeton University professor Robert P. George,^[19] nationally syndicated radio host Mark Levin,^[20] Former Attorney General Edwin Meese,^[21] Tea Party Express,^[22] Young Conservatives of Texas,^[23] U.S. Senators Jim DeMint,^[24] Mike Lee,^[25] Rand Paul,^[26] and Pat Toomey.^[27] He has also been endorsed by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, Texas Congressman Ron Paul,^[28] as well as former United States Senator from Pennsylvania Rick Santorum.^[29] Cruz faces opposition from sitting Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst in the Republican senatorial primary.

Personal life[link]

Cruz was born and spent the first four years of his life in Calgary before his parents returned to Houston. His father was jailed and tortured by the Batista regime and fought for Fidel Castro in the Cuban Revolution ^[30] but "didn't know Castro was a Communist" and later became a staunch critic of Castro when "the rebel leader took control and began seizing private property and suppressing dissent".^[31] He moved to Austin, Texas, in 1957 to study at the University of Texas. He spoke no English and had $100 sewn into his underwear.^[32] The elder Cruz worked his way through school as a dishwasher making 50 cents an hour. Cruz’s mother, who was from Houston, was the first person in her family ever to go to college. She earned a math degree at Rice University in the 1950s, working summers at Foley’s and Shell. "I'm Cuban, Irish, and Italian, and yet somehow I ended up Southern Baptist."^[2]

Cruz and his wife, Heidi Suzanne Cruz, have two daughters, Caroline Camille and Catherine Christiane.

Honors and awards[link]

• "America's Leading Lawyers for Business," Chambers USA (2009 & 2010)
• "50 Most Influential Minority Lawyers in America," National Law Journal (2008)
• "25 Greatest Texas Lawyers of the Past Quarter Century," Texas Lawyer (2010)
• "20 Young Hispanic Americans on the Rise," Newsweek Magazine (1999)
• Traphagen Distinguished Alumnus, Harvard Law School
• Primary Editor, Harvard Law Review
• Executive Editor, Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy
• Founding Editor, Harvard Latino Law Review
• John M. Olin Fellow in Law and Economics, Harvard Law School

See also[link]

	Law portal
	Texas portal

• List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ted Cruz

• Ted Cruz for U.S. Senate campaign website
• "Cruz Control: A Republican star rises in Texas," National Review, Mark Hemingway, May 4, 2009
• Ted Cruz’s Morgan Lewis law firm bio
• "Ted Cruz, hatching a site, expects Abbott to run for a different office," Austin American-Statesman, W. Gardner Selby, March 4, 2009
• "Justices listen to a key voice," The National Law Journal (cover story), Marcia Coyle, April 7, 2008
• Announcement of Ted Cruz's departure as Solicitor General
• "In state politics, his star is rising," Austin American-Statesman (front page story), Mark Lisheron, January 15, 2006
• Debating the Supreme Court's Heller decision with the DC Attorney General on News Hour with Jim Lehrer (video)
• "A Day in the life of... Ted Cruz," Texas Bar Journal, Kim Davey, Vol. 69, No. 7

Tiger Woods
Woods at a Chevron World Challenge charity event (2011)
Personal information
Full name	Eldrick Tont Woods
Nickname	Tiger
Born	(1975-12-30) December 30, 1975 (age 36) Cypress, California
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight	185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st)
Nationality	United States
Residence	Jupiter Island, Florida
Spouse	Elin Nordegren (2004–2010)
Children	Sam Alexis (b. 2007) Charlie Axel (b. 2009)
Career
College	Stanford University (two years)
Turned professional	1996
Current tour(s)	PGA Tour (joined 1996)
Professional wins	99[1]
Number of wins by tour
PGA Tour	72 (3rd all time)
European Tour	38 (3rd all time)[2][3]
Japan Golf Tour	2
Asian Tour	1
PGA Tour of Australasia	1
Other	16
Best results in Major Championships (Wins: 14)
Masters Tournament	Won: 1997, 2001, 2002, 2005
U.S. Open	Won: 2000, 2002, 2008
The Open Championship	Won: 2000, 2005, 2006
PGA Championship	Won: 1999, 2000, 2006, 2007
Achievements and awards
PGA Tour Rookie of the Year	1996
PGA Player of the Year	1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
PGA Tour Player of the Year	1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
PGA Tour leading money winner	1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Vardon Trophy	1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009
Byron Nelson Award	1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
FedEx Cup Champion	2007, 2009
(For a full list of awards, see here)

Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975)^[4][5] is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No. 1, he is the highest-paid professional athlete in the world, having earned an estimated US$90.5 million from winnings and endorsements in 2010.^[6][7]

Woods turned professional in 1996, and by April 1997 he had already won his first major, the 1997 Masters. He first reached the number one position in the world rankings in June 1997. Through the 2000s, Woods was the dominant force in golf, spending 264 weeks from August 1999 to September 2004 and 281 weeks from June 2005 to October 2010 as world number one. From December 2009 to early April 2010, Woods took leave from professional golf to focus on his marriage after he admitted infidelity. His multiple infidelities were revealed by several different women, through many worldwide media sources.^[8] This was followed by a loss of form, and his ranking gradually fell to a low of #58 in November 2011.^[7][9] He snapped a career-long winless streak of 107 weeks when he captured the Chevron World Challenge in December 2011.^[9] As of April 8, 2012, he is ranked #8.^[10]

Woods has broken numerous golf records. He has been world number one for the most consecutive weeks and for the greatest total number of weeks of any other golfer. He has been awarded PGA Player of the Year a record ten times,^[11] the Byron Nelson Award for lowest adjusted scoring average a record eight times, and has the record of leading the money list in nine different seasons. He has won 14 professional major golf championships, the second highest of any player (Jack Nicklaus leads with 18), and 72 PGA Tour events, third all time behind Sam Snead and Nicklaus.^[12] He has more career major wins and career PGA Tour wins than any other active golfer does. He is the youngest player to achieve the career Grand Slam, and the youngest and fastest to win 50 tournaments on tour. Additionally, Woods is only the second golfer, after Jack Nicklaus, to have achieved a career Grand Slam three times. Woods has won 16 World Golf Championships, and won at least one of those events in each of the first 11 years after they began in 1999.

Background and family[link]

Woods was born Eldrick Tont Woods in Cypress, California, to Earl (1932–2006) and Kultida (Tida) Woods (born 1944). He is the only child of their marriage, but does have two half-brothers, Earl Jr. (born 1955) and Kevin (born 1957), and a half-sister, Royce (born 1958) from the 18-year marriage of Earl Woods and his first wife, Barbara Woods Gray.^[13] Earl, a retired lieutenant colonel and Vietnam War veteran, was of mixed African American, Chinese, and Native American ancestry. Kultida (née Punsawad), originally from Thailand (where Earl had met her on a tour of duty in 1968), is of mixed Thai, Chinese, and Dutch ancestry. This makes Woods himself half Asian (one-quarter Chinese and one-quarter Thai), one-quarter African American, one-eighth Native American, and one-eighth Dutch.^[14] He refers to his ethnic make-up as "Cablinasian" (a syllabic abbreviation he coined from Caucasian, Black, American Indian, and Asian).^[15]

Woods' first name, Eldrick, was coined by his mother because it began with "E" (for Earl) and ended with "K" (for Kultida). His middle name Tont is a traditional Thai name. He was nicknamed Tiger in honor of his father's friend Col. Vuong Dang Phong, who had also been known as Tiger.^[16]

Woods has a niece, Cheyenne Woods, who is an amateur golfer on Wake Forest University's golf team.^[17]

Early life and amateur golf career[link]

Woods grew up in Orange County, California. He was a child prodigy, introduced to golf before the age of two, by his athletic father Earl, a single-figure handicap amateur golfer who had been one of the earliest African-American college baseball players at Kansas State University.^[18] In 1978, Tiger putted against comedian Bob Hope in a television appearance on The Mike Douglas Show. At age three, he shot a 48 over nine holes over the Cypress Navy course, and at age five, he appeared in Golf Digest and on ABC's That's Incredible.^[19] Before turning seven, Tiger won the Under Age 10 section of the Drive, Pitch, and Putt competition, held at the Navy Golf Course in Cypress, California.^[20] In 1984 at the age of eight, he won the 9–10 boys' event, the youngest age group available, at the Junior World Golf Championships.^[21] He first broke 80 at age eight.^[22] He went on to win the Junior World Championships six times, including four consecutive wins from 1988 to 1991.^{[23][24][25][26][27]}

Woods' father Earl wrote that Tiger first beat him when he was 11 years old, with Earl trying his best. Earl lost to Tiger every time from then on.^[28][29] Woods first broke 70 on a regulation golf course at age 12.^[30]

Woods' first major national junior tournament was the 1989 Big I, when he was 13 years old. Woods was paired with pro John Daly, then relatively unknown, in the final round; the event's format placed a professional with each group of juniors who had qualified. Daly birdied three of the last four holes to beat Woods by only one stroke.^[31] As a young teenager, Woods first met Jack Nicklaus in Los Angeles at the Bel-Air Country Club, when Nicklaus was performing a clinic for the club's members. Woods was part of the show, and impressed Nicklaus and the crowd with his skills and potential.^[32] Earl Woods had researched in detail the career accomplishments of Nicklaus, and had set his young son the goals of breaking those records.^[30]

While attending Western High School in Anaheim at the age of 15, Woods became the youngest ever U.S. Junior Amateur champion (a record which stood until it was broken by Jin Liu in 2010).^[33] He was named 1991's Southern California Amateur Player of the Year (for the second consecutive year) and Golf Digest Junior Amateur Player of the Year. In 1992, he defended his title at the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, becoming the first multiple winner; competed in his first PGA Tour event, the Nissan Los Angeles Open (he missed the 36-hole cut); and was named Golf Digest Amateur Player of the Year, Golf World Player of the Year, and Golfweek National Amateur of the Year.^[34][35]

The following year, Woods won his third consecutive U.S. Junior Amateur Championship; he remains the event's only three-time winner.^[36] In 1994, at the TPC at Sawgrass in Florida, he became the youngest-ever winner of the U.S. Amateur Championship, a record that stood until 2008 when it was broken by Danny Lee.^[37] He was a member of the American team at the 1994 Eisenhower Trophy World Amateur Golf Team Championships (winning), and the 1995 Walker Cup (losing).^[38][39]

Woods graduated from Western High School in 1994 at age 18, and was voted "Most Likely to Succeed" among the graduating class. He had starred for the high school's golf team under coach Don Crosby.^[40]

College golf career[link]

Woods was recruited very heavily by college golf powers, and chose Stanford University, the 1994 NCAA Division I champion. He enrolled at Stanford in the fall of 1994 under a golf scholarship, winning his first collegiate event, the 40th Annual William H. Tucker Invitational, that September.^[41] He declared a major in economics, and was nicknamed "Urkel" by college teammate Notah Begay III.^[42] In 1995, he successfully defended his U.S. Amateur title at the Newport Country Club in Rhode Island^[37] and was voted Pac-10 Player of the Year, NCAA First Team All-American, and Stanford's Male Freshman of the Year (an award that encompasses all sports).^[43][44] He participated in his first PGA Tour major, the 1995 Masters Tournament, and tied for 41st as the only amateur to make the cut. At age 20 in 1996, he became the first golfer to win three consecutive U.S. Amateur titles^[45] and won the NCAA individual golf championship.^[46] In winning the Silver Medal as leading amateur at The Open Championship, he tied the record for an amateur aggregate score of 281.^[47] He left college after two years and turned professional.

Professional career[link]

Woods in 2001

Woods became a professional golfer in August 1996, and immediately signed deals with Nike, Inc. and Titleist that ranked as the most lucrative endorsement contracts in golf history at that time.^[48][49] Woods was named Sports Illustrated's 1996 Sportsman of the Year and PGA Tour Rookie of the Year.^[50] In April 1997, he won his first major, the Masters, becoming the tournament's youngest-ever winner.^[51] Two months later, he set the record for the fastest-ever ascent to #1 in the Official World Golf Rankings.^[52] After a lackluster 1998, Woods finished the 1999 season with eight wins, including the PGA Championship, a feat not achieved since 1974.^[53][54]

In 2000, Woods achieved six consecutive wins, the longest winning streak since 1948. One of these was the 2000 U.S. Open, where he broke or tied nine tournament records in what Sports Illustrated called "the greatest performance in golf history."^[55] At age 24, he became the youngest golfer to achieve the Career Grand Slam.^[56] At the end of 2000, Woods had won nine of the twenty PGA Tour events he entered and had broken the record for lowest scoring average in tour history. He was named the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, the first and only athlete to be honored twice, and was ranked by Golf Digest magazine as the twelfth-best golfer of all time.^[57][58]

Woods at the 2004 Ryder Cup

Woods' victory in the 2001 Masters Tournament made him the first player to hold all four major professional golf titles at the same time.^[59] Following a stellar 2001 and 2002 in which Woods continued to dominate the tour, Woods' career hit a "slump".^[53][60] He did not win a major in 2003 or 2004. In September 2004, Vijay Singh overtook Woods in the Official World Golf Rankings, breaking Woods' record streak of 264 weeks at #1.^[61] Woods rebounded in 2005, winning six official PGA Tour money events and reclaiming the top spot in July after swapping it back and forth with Singh over the first half of the year.^[62]

In 2006, Woods began dominantly, winning his first two PGA tournaments but failing to capture his fifth Masters championship in April.^[63][64] Following the death of his father in May, Woods took a nine-week hiatus from the tour and appeared rusty upon his return at the U.S. Open, missing the cut at Winged Foot.^[65] However, he quickly returned to form and ended the year by winning six consecutive tour events. At the season's close, with 54 wins and 12 majors wins, Woods had broken the tour records for both total wins and total majors wins over eleven seasons.^[66]

Woods at the 2006 Masters Tournament

He continued to excel in 2007 and the first part of 2008. In April 2008, he underwent knee surgery and missed the next two months on the tour.^[67] Woods returned for the 2008 U.S. Open, where he struggled the first day but ultimately claimed a dramatic victory over Rocco Mediate, after which Mediate said, "This guy does things that are just not normal by any stretch of the imagination," and Kenny Perry added, "He beat everybody on one leg."^[68][69][70] Two days later, Woods announced that he would miss the remainder of the season due to further knee surgery, and that his knee was more severely damaged than previously revealed, prompting even greater praise for his U.S. Open performance. Woods called it "my greatest ever championship."^[71][72][73] In Woods' absence, TV ratings for the remainder of the season suffered a huge decline from 2007.^[74]

Upon Woods' much-anticipated return in 2009, he performed well, including a spectacular performance at the 2009 Presidents Cup, but failed to win a major, the first year since 2004 that he failed to do so.^[75][76][77] After his marital infidelities came to light at the end of 2009 and received massive media coverage, Woods announced in December that he would be taking an indefinite break from competitive golf. In February 2010, he delivered a televised apology for his behavior. During this period, several companies ended their endorsement deals with Woods.

He returned to competition in April at the 2010 Masters Tournament, where he finished in a tie for fourth place.^[78] He followed the Masters with poor showings at the Quail Hollow Championship and the Players Championship, where he withdrew in the fourth round citing injury.^[79] Shortly afterward, Woods' coach since 2003, Hank Haney, resigned the position; he was replaced in August by Sean Foley. The rest of the season went badly for Woods, who failed to win a single event for the first time since turning professional, while nevertheless finishing the season ranked #2 in the world.

Woods' performance continued to suffer in 2011, taking its toll on his ranking. After falling to #7 in March, he rebounded to #5 with a strong showing at the 2011 Masters Tournament, where he tied for fourth place.^[80][81][82] Due to leg injuries incurred at the Masters, he missed several summer events; in July he fired his longtime caddy Steve Williams, replacing him temporarily with friend Bryon Bell.^[83][84] After returning to tournament play in August, Woods continued to falter, and his ranking gradually fell to a low of #58.^[9] He rose to #50 in mid-November after a third-place win at the Emirates Australian Open, and broke his winless streak with a victory at December's Chevron World Challenge.^[9][85]

His 2012 season started at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on the European Tour in late January. For the first two days of play Tiger was grouped with Rory McIlroy and world No.1 Luke Donald. He shot under par rounds of 70 and 69 on Thursday and Friday respectively, which left him in joint 4th place at 5-under par. His low round of the week came on Saturday, shooting a 6-under par 66, giving him the joint lead with England's Robert Rock. Woods struggled on Sunday and couldn't mount a big enough charge, shooting a level par 72 and settling for joint 3rd place. Woods' second tournament of the year came at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in early February which he had not played since 2002. His amateur partner for the week was Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. Woods shot solid rounds of 68-68-67 on the first three days, and began Sunday in third place, four shots behind leader Charlie Wi. However, he struggled with his putting and shot a final round 75 while his playing partner Phil Mickelson shot a 64 and won the tournament.

His next tournament was the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in Arizona. Woods battled to win his first round match against Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, 1-up, and then played Nick Watney in the second round. On the 18th hole, Woods had to make birdie to extend the match, however his 5 foot putt missed and he was knocked out of the tournament. Woods commented that his putting was hindered technically and required some work after battling with it throughout the round.^[86] The following week Woods teed off at the Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Woods commented that he had referred back to putting basics instead of new technique he had been applying. Woods' putting over the first three days of tournament play was noticeably better, but the ball was struggling to fall into the hole. Tiger began the fourth round on 2-under par, 9 shots behind leader Rory McIlroy. After parring the first hole and being delayed by adverse weather, Woods returned and played the remaining 17 holes in 8-under par including two eagles and no bogeys. A birdie-eagle finish set up Woods to possibly claim the title, however McIlroy kept his cool and won the tournament. Tiger finished joint second, and the round also marked his lowest final round score in his PGA Tour career.

Woods played the following week at the WGC-Cadillac Championship in Miami, Florida. Tiger spent the first three days near the top of the leaderboard and shot 72-67-68 to start the fourth round in tied 8th place at 9-under par, 8 shots behind leader Bubba Watson. Woods struggled on the front 9 and shot 2-over par going out. He then began to noticeably limp on the next three holes and went on to withdraw from the tournament with an apparent left leg injury, which was later confirmed as a strain on his left Achilles tendon that had been injured previously at the 2011 Masters Tournament. After a short time off, Woods played in the Tavistock Cup at the Lake Nona Golf and Country Club, representing Team Albany, finishing 4th. The same week, Woods began the Arnold Palmer Invitational. After three rounds of 69, 65 and a 71, he began Sunday in the lead at 11-under par, one shot ahead of Graeme McDowell. Woods remained in the lead throughout the round and shot a 2-under par 70 to claim his seventh win at Bay Hill and also marked his first win on the PGA Tour since the BMW Championship in September 2009. After a week off, he returned to Augusta for the Masters Tournament. Over the four days, Woods was never close to contending the title, and shot rounds of 72-75-72-74 to finish tied 40th. After a 3 week break from competition, Woods traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina, for the Wells Fargo Championship. Although starting positively with a 1-under par 71, Woods' second round of 73 (1-over) derailed his tournament hopes and resulted in him missing his eighth cut as a professional by 1 shot and second in as many years for the tournament. The following week, Woods played The Players Championship. After an opening round of 74 (2-over), he was in threat of missing a second consecutive cut, a first for his professional career, however after a 4-under 68, he was firmly staying in the tournament as well as being in the hunt for the weekend. However, a weekend charge never mounted despite good ball striking and he settled for T40th at 1-under par.

Endorsements[link]

Woods has been called the world's most marketable athlete.^[87] Shortly after his 21st birthday in 1996, he began signing endorsement deals with numerous companies, including General Motors, Titleist, General Mills, American Express, Accenture, and Nike, Inc. In 2000, he signed a 5-year, $105 million contract extension with Nike. It was the largest endorsing deal ever signed by an athlete at that time.^[88] Woods' endorsement has been credited with playing a significant role in taking the Nike Golf brand from a "start-up" golf company earlier in the past decade, to becoming the leading golf apparel company in the world, and a major player in the equipment and golf ball market.^[87][89] Nike Golf is one of the fastest growing brands in the sport, with an estimated $600 million in sales.^[90] Woods has been described as the "ultimate endorser" for Nike Golf,^[90] frequently seen wearing Nike gear during tournaments, and even in advertisements for other products.^[88] Woods receives a cut from the sales of Nike Golf apparel, footwear, golf equipment, golf balls,^[87] and has a building named after him at Nike’s headquarters campus in Beaverton, Oregon.^[91]

In 2002, Woods was involved in every aspect of the launch of Buick's Rendezvous SUV. A company spokesman stated that Buick is happy with the value of Woods' endorsement, pointing out that more than 130,000 Rendezvous vehicles were sold in 2002 and 2003. "That exceeded our forecasts," he was quoted as saying, "It has to be in recognition of Tiger." In February 2004, Buick renewed Woods' endorsement contract for another five years, in a deal reportedly worth $40 million.^[88]

Woods collaborated closely with TAG Heuer to develop the world's first professional golf watch, released in April 2005.^[92] The lightweight, titanium-construction watch, designed to be worn while playing the game, incorporates numerous innovative design features to accommodate golf play. It is capable of absorbing up to 5,000 Gs of shock, far in excess of the forces generated by a normal golf swing.^[92] In 2006, the TAG Heuer Professional Golf Watch won the prestigious iF product design award in the Leisure/Lifestyle category.^[93]

Woods preparing for a photo shoot in 2006

Woods also endorses the Tiger Woods PGA Tour series of video games; he has done so since 1999.^[94] In 2006, he signed a six-year contract with Electronic Arts, the series' publisher.^[95]

In February 2007, along with Roger Federer and Thierry Henry, Woods became an ambassador for the "Gillette Champions" marketing campaign. Gillette did not disclose financial terms, though an expert estimated the deal could total between $10 million and $20 million.^[96]

In October 2007, Gatorade announced that Woods would have his own brand of sports drink starting in March 2008. "Gatorade Tiger" was his first U.S. deal with a beverage company and his first licensing agreement. Although no figures were officially disclosed, Golfweek magazine reported that it was for five years and could pay him as much as $100 million.^[97] The company decided in early fall 2009 to discontinue the drink due to weak sales.^[98]

According to Golf Digest, Woods made $769,440,709 from 1996 to 2007,^[99] and the magazine predicted that by 2010, Woods would pass one billion dollars in earnings.^[100] In 2009, Forbes confirmed that Woods was indeed the world's first athlete to earn over a billion dollars in his career (before taxes), after accounting for the $10 million bonus Woods received for the FedEx Cup title.^[101][102] The same year, Forbes estimated his net worth to be $600 million, making him the second richest "African American" behind only Oprah Winfrey.^[103]

Honors[link]

Woods driving in 2007

On August 20, 2007, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and First Lady Maria Shriver announced that Woods would be inducted into the California Hall of Fame. He was inducted December 5, 2007 at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts in Sacramento.^[104][105]

He has been named "Athlete of the Decade" by the Associated Press in December 2009.^[106] He has been named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year a record-tying four times, and is the only person to be named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year more than once.

Since his record-breaking win at the 1997 Masters Tournament, golf's increased popularity is commonly attributed to Woods' presence. He is credited by some sources for dramatically increasing prize money in golf, generating interest in new audiences, and for drawing the largest TV audiences in golf history.^{[50][107][108][109][110][111]}