Professional golf career of Tiger Woods first professional golf event at the Greater Milwaukee Open, tying for 60th place, recorded a hole-in-one, and would win two events in the next three months to qualify for the Tour Championship. For his efforts, Woods was named "Sports Illustrated"'s 1996 Sportsman of the Year and PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. He began his tradition of wearing a red shirt during the final round of tournaments, which was a link to his college days at Stanford. The following April, Woods won his first major, The Masters, with a record score of 18-under-par 270, by a record margin of 12
Professional golf career of Tiger Woods 7-over 79 during the second round to miss the 36-hole cut by eight strokes. Woods withdrew from The Players Championship during the fourth round, on May 9, later citing a neck injury. He had scored 70-71-71 in the first three rounds, and was two over par for the round, while playing the seventh hole, when he withdrew. Hank Haney, who had coached Woods since 2003, issued a statement resigning as his coach shortly after The Players Championship. Woods returned to competitive golf four weeks later to defend his title at The Memorial Tournament. He made the cut and went on