The Masters: Tiger Woods Speaks out After Big Win

Tiger Woods is taking his time letting it sink in that he just won his fifth Masters Tournament, 11 years after his last major win.

He described receiving his fifth green jacket as “surreal” and spoke about the already iconic image of him embracing his children 22 years after he hugged his own father, Earl, after winning his first Masters in 1997.

“I did the same thing to my dad and now I’m the dad with my son doing the same thing,” he told CNN. “It’s amazing how life evolves, changes.”

“That was 22 years ago, when my dad was there and then now my son’s there, my daughter was there, my mom’s there. My mom was there 22 years ago and the fact that she’s still around, still kicking, still fighting, goes to show you her resiliency,” he continued.

“It’s hard to comprehend right now. I mean, honestly it’s only been a few hours out of winning the tournament. I’m still trying to enjoy it and figure out that I actually won it.

“I know I have the green jacket on, but it’s just, it’s still, I think it’s going to take a little bit of time to sink in.”

Even when it wasn’t immediately clear that fans could actually believe, rather than simply hope, for a win from Woods on Sunday, he said he had faith for another major win following 11 tumultuous years.

“I did think it would come,” he said. “I knew it was in me, now did I know it was going to be this week? No. But I had a good feeling that the way I was shaping the golf ball that I was going to be in the mix,” he said.

“Now being in the mix and winning a championship are two totally different things. The last two major championships, yeah I was in the mix, but I didn’t win,” he said, referring to Carnoustie and the 2018 PGA Championship.

“It all flipped at 12 you know when Franky [Italian Francesco Molinari] made a mistake there. He just let everyone back in the tournament. And with six or seven guys with a chance to win the championship it got a little complicated but fortunately I was able to hit some of my best golf shots all week,” Woods said.

In the midst of personal turmoil over the past decade, Woods was also experiencing injuries beyond anything he thought he could recover from. He admitted to struggling with everyday tasks like getting out of bed, driving and taking his kids to school. After undergoing a spinal fusion surgery, which was his fourth back procedure, he was arrested on a DUI charge in May 2017.

After that, he made a tentative return to hitting golf balls in August 2017 and successfully returned to the professional golf circuit in 2018.

“This will be up there with one of the hardest I’ve had to win because of what transpired over the last couple of years,” he said.

“it was just an amazing buzz out there, trying to figure out what was going on but to stay present and focused on what i was trying to do. I kind of liked it.”