Early Tiger Woods autographs pre-dating his monumental 1997 Masters victory are hard to come by in the hobby. Tigers single signed golf balls from this era? Virtually non-existent. For starters, it is well-documented that Tiger—always the perfectionist—has never liked signing golf balls due to the inconsistencies the little cratered sphere gives his signature. In fact, he reportedly has not signed any for fans since shortly after he turned pro. Secondly, Upper Deck Authenticated — Woods’ exclusive memorabilia and autograph partner since 2001 — has regulated the type of items Tiger signs, particularly golf balls, making this offered lot a true rarity.
Woods made his official PGA Tour debut as a professional on August 29, 1996, at the Greater Milwaukee Open. He had already played in the Masters and The Open Championship as an amateur while competing for Stanford, but this was the first tournament he could actually receive a paycheck. He shot under par both Thursday and Friday to sit in 8th place entering the weekend, but ended up 60th place. Seven months later he would begin his unprecedented run with 14 majors in 11 years, dominating the golf world unlike any player has before or since.
The Titleist 2 golf ball, labeled “DT ^ 2 – Piece” on the side, has the official “GMO” logo for the Greater Milwaukee Open. Tiger has left his 8/10 autograph in black marker. According to our consignor, whose event operations business worked on-site for numerous PGA tournaments over a 20-year period, the autographed ball was procured by a PGA caddie at the 1996 tournament with whom the consignor became good friends. It is unknown if this ball was actually used by Tiger over the four-day tournament (Aug. 29-Sept. 1), but there is a good possibility. The caddie wishes to remain anonymous to protect his reputation as he is still actively working in the golf industry.
Includes detailed letter of provenance from consignor. Full LOA from JSA.