Tiger Woods’ Son Charlie Woods, 15, Qualifies for First USGA Championship

Charlie Woods’ golf career might just be getting started, but Tiger Woods’ son already has some major goals.

The 15-year-old golfer told reporters this week he hopes to one day win the U.S. Open after he works his way onto the PGA Tour.

Charlie, whom Woods shares with ex-wife Elin Nordegren, qualified for his first USGA Championship tournament on Wednesday. He shot a 1-under par on a 71-par course at the Eagle Trace Golf Club in Coral Springs, Fla., earning his first amateur tournament spot.

“The USGA means a lot to me,” Charlie said. “I want to win USGA Championships and hopefully one day the U.S. Open.”

Charlie has been competing on the golf course more frequently this year as he begins to find his footing in the sport his father, 48, has dominated and defined over much of the last three decades.

Woods’ son already proved his ambition earlier this year when he attempted to qualify for the U.S. Open tournament, which took place last weekend at the Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina.

But Charlie failed to make the U.S. Open, finishing tied for 61st in an April qualifying event.

Woods’ son has been slowly getting used to professional golf, competing alongside his father in the PNC Championship each of the last four years, according to the Associated Press.

“Any time I get a chance to spend time with my son, it’s always special,” Tiger told ESPN in 2022. “And to do it in a competitive forum, the last couple of years have been magical, and to be able to do it again, we’re looking forward to it.”

Charlie, who was born in 2009, has been around his father’s golf career since almost the day he was born. Less than a week after his birth, Charlie’s mother Elin brought him to watch Woods compete at the AT&T National tournament at Pebble Beach, California. 

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By the time he was 6 years old, Charlie was walking the course with his father as his honorary caddy at the Par 3 Contest for the Masters alongside his older sister Sam. Charlie has since continued to come along with Woods on the golf course, famously wearing matching outfits with his father whenever they compete in the annual PNC Championship.

“Tiger loves spending time with Charlie on the golf course, but he has a completely different vibe than Earl had while working with him,” a source told PEOPLE back in 2020.

“They’re all smiles. Tiger is definitely teaching him the right techniques, but there’s not the intensity that Earl had with him,” the insider added. “It’s a total bonding situation. Tiger can get goofy and funny with Charlie. It’s not ‘all work and no play’ like Earl could sometimes get.”