‘Tiger HBO Documentary Review’

A Master Class In Showing the Human Side of the GOAT

Courtesy of AP

If you asked anyone on the street to name one of the greatest athletes of all time, one name might come up often…Tiger Woods. He is arguably one of the best athletes to ever play the game of golf. For decades, this was his whole description. His entire character and persona stemmed from how he played the game of golf. Crowds of people would watch as he mastered courses with scores that have alluded golfers for years. We all couldn’t wait for him to don his red shirt and black pants to kick some ass on a Sunday. This was all until one day in the spring of 2007 when his entire career and character came crumbling down. His reckoning came hard and it came fast. He hit a low in a way that most people never experience in their lives. A lot of people hated him for what he did to his family and others couldn’t help but feel sorry for him as his golf game collapsed. This created dissonance with many of his fans. How could we reconcile the greatest golfer of all time with someone who, frankly, tore apart his family and life?

Courtesy of Golf Monthly

Well the HBO Documentary Tiger came with an answer… because he’s human. Full disclosure, I’m very into golf so I may be biased here. However, never before have I seen a documentary do such an excellent job of filling in the human side of someone who has been elevated to an idol status. After this documentary, you will get a perspective of Tiger’s life like never before. While I wish more of it had come from his own mouth, I think the directors made a great choice in how they told his story. Tiger obviously appears in the archived footage but the vast majority of his story is told by his friends and family. Don't worry you still get a little bit of Tiger but I won’t tell you when and how he speaks. I don’t want to give away too many spoilers but I never knew how complicated Tiger’s relationship with his dad was. You see a side of his dad from both his own words as well as his friends that will shock you in good and bad ways. It’s hard to reconcile the loving side with the tough/controlling side of his dad but it’s a necessary past for viewers to confront to fully understand the psyche of Tiger. His dad saw him as more than just a golfer but someone who could break through the “country club” stigma of the golfing world. In a way that would decimate the racist apparatus of the sport and transform it into one that could unite all who love the game. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions as you cheer him on during his rise to success and feel for him in the worst moments.

It was hard to come up with a rating for this because I loved it and am also biased since I’m a fan. However, I believe that Tiger’s story was told in such a way that didn’t hold back yet elevated the human come back story. All things considered, I believe the Tiger documentary deserves a 9.1 rating. After seeing how he played with his son in the PNC Championship in 2020, I’m excited to see what the future holds for both of them.

Courtesy of ABC