Tiger Woods 10 memorable moments at the Masters

Today, Tiger Woods celebrates his 40th birthday. In Augusta, he’s won four green jackets and accumulated more than $7.3 million in winnings. He’s also piled up many highlights in his storied career.

Here’s a look at Tiger’s 10 most memorable moments at the Masters Tournament:

1) Woods wins the 1997 Masters: In his third Masters appearance (first as a professional), the 21-year-old Woods got off to a rocky start with four bogeys on the front nine. Woods rallied on the second nine with four birdies and an eagle and never looked back. He followed with rounds of 66-65-69 to cruise to a 12-shot victory. Woods set a Masters 72-hole scoring record with his 18-under-par 270 total. By becoming the first black golfer to win a major championship – Woods described himself as “Cablinasian” to explain the different ethnicities from his black father and Thai mother – he shot into superstardom and took the sport to another level.

2) Woods chips in for birdie at No. 16 in the final round of the 2005 Masters: It has been shown on TV thousands of times. Holding a one-shot lead over Chris DiMarco, Woods hit his tee shot long and left at the par-3 16th hole. Using his creativity, Woods knocked his chip shot up the slope left of the pin. His ball rolled down the hill, stopped briefly on the edge of the cup and fell in the hole. “In your life, have you ever seen anything like that?” CBS announcer Verne Lundquist exclaimed.

3) Woods claims the 2001 Masters to finish off the Tiger Slam: After finishing fifth in the 2000 Masters, Woods reeled off wins at the U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship. In the final round of the 2001 Masters, Woods finished off the Tiger Slam, out-dueling David Duval and Phil Mickelson. A Duval bogey at No. 16 and a Woods birdie at No. 18 allowed Tiger to pull out a two-shot victory; Mickelson finished third.

4) Woods becomes the third golfer in Masters history to win in consecutive years: Tied with Retief Goosen entering the final round in 2002, Woods posted 71 for a three-shot win over the South African golfer. Woods joined Jack Nicklaus (1965, 1966) and Nick Faldo (1989, 1990) as the only players to win green jackets in consecutive years.

5) Woods makes a hole-in-one at No. 9 in the 2004 Par-3 Contest: In a rare appearance in the Par-3 Contest, Woods played in the popular Wednesday event with Mark O’Meara and Arnold Palmer (Woods wouldn’t play in the Par-3 Contest again until 2015). With thousands of patrons surrounding Ike’s Pond, Woods holed his tee shot on the final hole.

6) Woods ties Masters birdie record, rallies in third round to win 2005 Masters: Rain wreaked havoc on the first two rounds, suspending play for many golfers. Woods trailed Chris DiMarco by four shots when darkness suspended third-round play Saturday – Woods closed the day with birdies at Nos. 7-9. When he returned in the morning, Woods started at No. 10 and reeled off four birdies in a row. The stretch of seven consecutive birdies in the third round tied the consecutive birdie mark set by Steve Pate in 1999.

7) Woods makes the cut as an amateur in 1995: In his first Masters appearance, the reigning U.S. Amateur champion left Augusta with some hardware. Woods opened with rounds of 72-72 to make the cut by two shots. He closed with 77-72 to tie for 41st place, finishing as the low amateur to claim the sterling silver cup.
8) Woods comes back from his scandal in 2010: Two weeks after a bizarre Thanksgiving incident, Woods admitted to being unfaithful to then-wife Elin Nordegren in a statement. After losing a number of sponsors and undergoing a 45-day therapy program, Woods made his return to golf at the 2010 Masters. Woods opened with rounds of 68-70-70 and trailed by just four entering the final round, but he stumbled on the final day with bogeys at Nos. 1, 4 and 5. Woods, who posted four eagles in the tournament, finished at 11-under 277, five shots behind champion Phil Mickelson.

9) Woods plays with rival Mickelson in the last round of the 2009: The two biggest names in golf finally faced off on the final day at the Masters, but they each entered the final round seven shots off the pace. While Lefty birdied six of the first eight holes and finished with 67, Woods birdied Nos. 13, 15 and 16 to move briefly into contention before closing with bogeys on Nos. 17 and 18. Woods shot 68 for a tie for sixth place.

10) Woods receives a two-shot penalty for an illegal drop in 2013: In the second round of the Masters, Woods was in the thick of contention at 5-under-par when he hit his third shot – a wedge shot – to the No. 15 green. His ball ricocheted off the bottom of the flagstick and rolled into the pond. Woods took a drop, made bogey and left the hole. On Saturday morning – before the third round began – rules officials deemed Woods had taken an improper drop after dropping two yards from his original spot. He was assessed a two-shot penalty but allowed to stay in the tournament. Woods finished in fourth place, four strokes behind champion Adam Scott.