“To have Tiger Woods watching you, it’s crazy” – 18-yo amateur golfer details ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ to play with Charlie Woods
Charlie Woods was the star at the US Junior Amateur Championship this week. However, the 15-year-old son of 15-time Major winner Tiger Woods failed to make the cut. The young golfer carded a 10-over par 80 on Tuesday (July 23) to exit the competition while his dad watched on alongside a large crowd.
Notably, the tournament rules prevented Tiger from serving as Charlie’s caddie. However, he was still closely following his son’s group and the other amateurs were more than happy.
Baylor freshman Davis Ovard and Alabama golf commit Chase Kyes, both 18, admitted to being ecstatic by the legendary golfer’s presence at the event. Ovard dubbed it ‘crazy’ to have Tiger watching him play.
The young American golfer, who finished stroke play at T25, lauded Charlie and called it his ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’ to play with the superstar’s son. It is pertinent to note that the latter scored 80 in round 2, while Ovard signed a 68.
Speaking about his experience of playing with Charlie Woods at the US Junior Amateur, Davis Ovard said, as quoted by Golfweek:
“It was a lot of fun. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play with Charlie. And to have Tiger watching you, it’s crazy but it’s so much fun. The first few holes, obviously I was nervous with this crowd but once I settled in and relaxed, it was just enjoying the moment.”
It is pertinent to note that this was both Ovard and Kyes’ first event with large crowds. The 18-year-olds seem to enjoy the fan following themselves. Kyes, who finished an impressive T3 with a Round 2 score of 66, said he felt ‘cool’ hearing about ‘400 people clapping’ for his shots.
Chase Kyes said:
“It was cool because if you are playing in a different group and you hit a good shot, your dad is clapping. And then you hit a good shot in this group and you’ve got like 400 people clapping. It was a cool feeling for sure.”
Amateurs laud ‘super nice kid’ Charlie Woods
Both Kyes and Ovard heaped praises on Charlie Woods after their rounds. The college-bound golfers, three years senior to Tiger’s son, dubbed Charlie a player with “all the talent in the world.” Ovard stated that the latter was a ‘super nice kid.’ He noted that ‘pressure’ on the 15-year-old is ‘crazy.’
Ovard, who met Charlie Woods at the US Junior Amateur on Sunday for the first time, told the media:
“He’s a super nice kid. I mean, you see him on social media and all of this stuff and you don’t really get to see what he’s like but he’s super nice. He’s a really good player and the amount of pressure on him is crazy — I couldn’t imagine that. He does a really good job handling the pressure.”
Kyes also stated that “Charlie is a great player.” The 18-year-old also noted that he tried to evade the pressure of being grouped with Tiger’s son. He said that he only looked over at Charlie a few times to avoid getting intimidated.
It is pertinent to note that Charlie Woods was visibly frustrated with himself after struggled through the two rounds, posting 82 and 80.
