Tiger Woods says he regularly reminds his teenage son Charlie to ‘always be you’ despite the teenager being constantly filmed and watched.
Woods, 49, is teeing it up with his 15-year-old son in the PNC Championship tomorrow.
The duo are playing the hit-and-giggle PGA Tour event in Florida for the fifth time.
Unsurprisingly, all eyes are on Charlie.
Speaking after a practice session at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, the 15-time major champion gave his verdict on how Charlie is handling the Woods name.
“Charlie is Charlie,” Woods told reporters on Thursday afternoon.
“Yes, he’s my son. He’s going to have the last name and he’s going to be part of the sport. But I just want him to be himself and just be your own person.
“That’s what we will always focus on. I will always encourage it, for him to carve his own name, carve his own path and have his own journey.”
Asked how Charlie is handling the attention thus far in his life, Woods said: “I think he’s doing a great job.
“In this day and age where you have so many different — everyone is basically media with all the phones.
“Being constantly filmed and constantly just — people watching him, that’s just part of his generation, and that’s part of the world that he has to maneuver through.
“I try and do the best job I possibly can as a parent. I’m always here for him.
“But at the end of the day, I just want him just to be himself and have his own life.”
Woods was asked a variety of questions in the short presser.
He revealed Charlie has beaten in his gross score over nine holes in practice, but he is yet to triumph over his old man in a full round.
This week, their game plan is for Charlie to try and find the fairway off the tee, with dad providing back-up with his iron shots and on the greens.
Woods said that the primary reason why he had his most recent back surgery, in September, was to give him the best possible chance to play this week.
“This has always been one of the bigger highlights of the year for us as a family, and now we get to have that moment together again,” he said.
Despite Woods’ reluctance to overdo it, he was spotted flushing some drivers.
Charlie was reportedly using the latest TaylorMade driver that Rory McIlroy was spotted using before The Showdown earlier in the week.
Woods also spoke of his admiration for World No.1 Scottie Scheffler, who matched his record at the Hero World Challenge with his ninth victory in the calendar year.
He said while Scheffler ‘moves around a lot’ during his swing, it’s really the ball flight that is so impressive.
“He has amazing feel for hitting the ball the right number, and that’s just something that is innate,” he said.
“I think how he’s handled the pressure and the expectations with he and his family, I think they’ve done an unbelievable job.
“He’s just coming into his own. This is the fun part of watching him develop. This is going to be the start of some unbelievable years.”
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