Tiger Woods was one of the most immense competitors sport has ever seen.
His intensity and intimidation factor was so immense that it helped him to 15 major championship victories, and his drive was so great that he made a record 142 consecutive cuts on the PGA Tour.
Tiger Woods is the greatest of all time in golf, so he can only truly be compared with the greats of other sports. And there’s an obvious comparison to be made between him and Michael Jordan.
Jordan brought the same intensity to the NBA. He, too, had the intimidation factor, where half the battle was won between him and his opponents before the game had even begun.
The two have developed a close friendship over the years due to Jordan’s golf fandom, and Woods once revealed who was more competitive between the two.
Tiger Woods admits Michael Jordan is more competitive than him
Woods, surprisingly, gave the nod to Jordan as the more competitive out of the two.
Speaking to Golf Digest in 2020, he said, “I would say 1A, 1B, myself and Michael,” Woods said. “He’s more, I think, outwardly competitive than I am. But I have my tendencies to be a little competitive at times.”
A little competitive is an understatement, and Woods went on to admit that he saw a lot of himself in Jordan when he saw him up close.
In 1997, when Woods became the youngest-ever winner of The Masters, he spent some time with Jordan during the Western Conference Finals of the NBA playoffs, and described what the experience was like.
Woods said, “They were playing the Knicks in the ECF. I went up there and hung out with him for a few days. It was neat to be a part of…the mindset—I can relate to that. I can relate to the intensity.”
Jordan won his fifth NBA championship that season, beating the Utah Jazz in the Finals during the infamous “Flu Game” series.
Michael Jordan said Tiger Woods had the greatest comeback he’s ever seen
Jordan knows a thing or two about a great comeback story. He retired from the NBA three times, coming back the first time to win another three NBA championships, and the second time to play with the Washington Wizards in the early 2000s.
But he said Woods’ 2019 Masters victory was the best that he has ever seen. He said to The Athletic, “I took two years off to play baseball, but nothing like that. I’m pretty sure he questioned himself, whether he could get it back, and he had to put a lot of work in.
“But he took it head-on. He had to change his game; he had to change his perspective a little bit. To me, it was the greatest comeback I’ve ever seen.”
Jordan said that he never thought he’d see the day that Woods would come back from his series of back injuries to win another major.
He continued, “I never thought he’d get back physically. He didn’t think he’d get back physically. But he did it. No one expected him to be back the way he is now. He’s probably the only person who believed he could get back.
“To me, that’s a major accomplishment. To me, it’s unbelievable. Mentally, you always think you can. But you can’t answer to what your body has to deal with.”
Through their incredible friendship, it’s incredible to see two of the all-time greats in their respective sports share such immense mutual respect.
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