The USGA has decided to honor Tiger Woods by putting his name on the U.S. Amateur medal and U.S. Junior Amateur trophy starting this year, the organization announced Saturday. Woods, who dominated the amateur level from 1991 to 1996, is one of the greatest junior champions of all time.
“The USGA and its championships have played a huge role in my life,” Woods said in a release. “The U.S. Junior Amateur and the U.S. Amateur were defining moments in my development as a golfer and as a person. It is extremely humbling to be recognized in this way, and I hope it inspires young players to follow their dreams and understand the history and values of the game.”
Before his record-setting professional career, Woods was an amateur from the ages of 15 to 20. He won three consecutive U.S. Junior Amateur Championships and three consecutive U.S. Amateur Championships, a feat that has not been accomplished in either championship since, much less both in a row. In fact, since Woods’ three-peat, no player has won back-to-back titles at either the U.S. Amateur or the U.S. Junior Amateur.
Now, the winners of these championships will receive awards befitting the greatest amateurs of our time. The U.S. Amateur trophy is already named the Havemeyer Trophy, after Theodore Havemeyer, the first USGA president, and the winner of the U.S. Amateur will also receive the Tiger Woods Medal. Since the U.S. Junior Amateur trophy did not have a secondary name, it will now bear the Woods trophy, a fitting honor for the greatest junior champion in USGA history.
“Tiger Woods redefined what amateur golf could be,” said USGA CEO Mike Wang. “His accomplishments as a junior and amateur didn’t just set records, they set a new standard of excellence. Naming our U.S. Amateur Medal and U.S. Junior Amateur Trophy in his honor ensures that all future champions will forever be connected to the traditions that helped shape the modern game.”
Woods joins Jack Nicklaus (U.S. Open), Mickey Wright (U.S. Women’s Open) and Joanne Carter (U.S. Women’s Amateur) as pioneers in earning the honor of having their names on the medal given to champions.
The Tiger Woods Medal will be awarded for the first time at the 126th U.S. Amateur Championship at Merion Golf Club, and the first Tiger Woods Trophy winner will be crowned at the 78th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship at Saucon Valley Country Club.
