Tiger Woods is a five-time Majors champion and the biggest name in golf. That didn’t stop former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning from talking smack when he was paired with Woods at the Memorial pro-am.
“He just gave me crap the entire time,” Woods said after Wednesday’s pro-am, via Golfweek’s Steve DiMeglio. “Which is par for the course. It’s what we do. We give each other a pretty good needle.”
The two sports icons had a good time giving each other a hard time but it’s clear they respect each other and enjoy playing together. Wednesday marked the fifth time they have golfed together — they previously paired up in 2018, 2009 and 2005.
Manning has made a lot of progress since he first golfed with Woods 14 years ago.
“He’s gotten so much better,” Woods told DiMeglio. “When we first played, he was just kind of starting out in the game. But now that he’s retired he can play a lot more golf. That’s been pretty cool for me to be able to play with him throughout the years.
“To know what he’s gone through and see him get ready for the season and what he’s been able to accomplish after all those surgeries, to walk around greatness like this, it’s always fun.”
After undergoing neck surgery and sitting out the 2011 season, Manning signed with the Broncos in 2012. He went on to play four seasons in Denver and won the AFC West all four years. Manning helped the Broncos reach two Super Bowls and defeated the Panthers 24-10 in Super Bowl 50.
After winning his second career Super Bowl, Manning retired from the NFL in 2016, giving him much more time to hit the links.
