I Was Inside The Ropes With Tiger Woods At The PGA Championship Saturday And It Was Very Cool

Riggs8/13/2018 2:12 PM

That picture is Tiger Woods on the 4th tee. I rolled in this morning with a few of my buddies and wasn’t quite sure what to expect. We posted up on the 12th fairway and thought it’d be a good spot for a couple casual guys like us to hang for the day.

“Battling Tiger crowds is for the birds,” we said. “You’ll miss all the golf!”

An hour later we heard Tiger birdied 1 and 2 and was on the 3rd tee. We sprinted there as fast as we could.

And got a great view.

At this point, we were hooked. For about 5 holes we followed Tiger as spectators, battling the galleries and mapping out the best hilltop vantage points like General Washington in the summer 1776.

Here we are on 5.

We did this for most of the front nine, then everything changed. I hit up my new friend PGA of America and requested an inside the ropes pass. They obliged.

It was time to get serious.

I threw on my best unbiased journalism outfit and headed out to support our guy. Just a couple buds on the 9th green.

The only way I know how to prove I’m actually there is to either take selfies or to get my hat in the shot. I am an artist.

A few people captured me in my (new) natural habitat. Just act cool, everybody. Act cool.

(you’re probably wondering who that other person is. that is Katie)

Sup Katie.

Another way to prove you belong is to take a knee so as to not block the view of the fans. Again, I flawlessly executed this important skill many times over.

A hilarious byproduct of BDE and his insane stardom is the army of journos following him around. It’s an endless back-and-forth fighting for real estate with the other Big Js.

Here is a cool picture I took on 16.

Walking nearly an entire round with Tiger Woods, you really understand how patient and controlled these guys have to be. There are delays, struggles, and misfortunes for 5 hours straight, yet these guys remain focused under the most intense pressure and in front of huge, loud crowds. It’s amazing.

On the 17th tee we waited in the blistering heat for about 15 minutes.